Corruption's End
by Crukix
Summary: Can corruption be cured before it is purged from the Earth itself? The seven seals are being broken, and judgement day looms. They must make their choice, good or evil, hope or despair? BBRae, RobStar
1. Corruption's Start

_Disclaimer_

**Teen Titans** is a registered trademark of DC Comics and Cartoon Network Inc. All trademarked characters, locations, themes and ideas are used without permission in a work of fan-created fiction. The following has been done without profit for purely entertainment purposes. All original concepts, characters, themes and ideas within are the copyrighted property of the author, and are not to be reproduced without his prior consent.

* * *

**Teen Titans**

**Corruption's End**

_By Crukix_

_

* * *

_

**Prologue: Corruption's Start**

_The arrival of the Demon Lord is only the beginning. If the world survives the judgement of the Demon Lord, they are deemed too pure to be tainted by His touch. The Demon Lord shall then be banished by a warrior of light, leaving the world in glory again._

_After the arrival of the Demon Lord, another will come, a true warrior of light, cloaked in the garments of the Holy Ones. This creature shall judge the world, and if they are not pure enough, then it shall lay waste to the world. _

_There is only one method for killing a Holy One: ..._

"X'hied!"

A curse echoed around the circular room, followed quickly by the sound of fists punching stone table. Glancing at the book again, the person scowled upon seeing the remaining text missing – someone had burned the remainder of the page away.

"Another dead end..." the figure grumbled, the tones of the voice identifying him as male. The voice danced with inquisition longing to be sated, even in the sigh he let out as he slammed the book shut.

Replacing the book as silently as he could, the man walked away from the shelves, glancing around at the various dusty tomes. The library was a magnificent creation, but people such as he were not allowed in at these times. It was dark outside, signalling that only the prophets were allowed within their hallowed halls.

Sneaking away from the room, he made his way through the halls, aiming to get out as silently as possible. As he made way, he stopped at the sound of distant voices, freezing completely at the sound. Straining his ears, he heard the briefest words of the conversation. Despite knowing he was not allowed in the halls at such an hour, he crept towards the source of the sound, curiosity drawing him closer.

"...have received reports of the Demon Lord's coming."

The few words made the man's eyebrows shoot up into his hairline. Heart quickening, he leant closer against the old oaken doors, straining to glimpse into the room. The Demon Lord had been sighted? He was sure he had heard wrong.

"You are sure?" It was an elderly female voice, one clearly identified as the Prophet Elder; a woman revered for her wisdom of past and present.

"Various sources confirm it," another voice answered. "A Demon Lord was reported having made way to a planet within this solar system, but was vanquished by a warrior of light."

Pulse quickening again, the person outside leant in closer. The prophecy he'd just been reading, seemingly coming into play within their very solar system? He'd always had a thirst for myths and legends, and now his mind danced with delight at the thought of such a thing occurring, while his blood grew cold at the thought of how the planet would most likely suffer.

"Then the planet shall be doomed," the Elder let out a saddened breath. "The holy one destroys a planet at the slightest sniff of corruption. No planet – no _creature_ – exists without a trace of corruption."

It was official, the planet was doomed. Outside, the person leant ever slightly more into the door, able to catch the smallest trace of the hologram hovering above the table. It was a projection of a brilliant blue planet, with masses of white clouds swirling above its surface, large brown and green masses of land on the surface itself.

Eyes widening, the person outside felt his breath catch. It was Earth. He'd always found the planet so intriguing to read about... the nature of their indigenous species; _humans_. He found it fascinating how there were at least a dozen alien races, all similar to these humans, his own race included.

Unable to help himself, his lips whispered another soft curse.

"Intruder!" the Elder suddenly barked.

In an instant, the old oaken doors whipped open, revealing four creatures stood within. All were white skinned and grey haired, wearing regal robes of golds and reds. On each of their faces was a look of distrust and venom, not moments before the Elder flicked her wrist, and suddenly the person outside found himself dragged in by an unseen force.

Telekinesis. Every 'Prophet' was a telekinetic, alongside their race's natural telepathic abilities.

"What have we here?" the Elder croaked, lifting her hand up, causing her bound captive to float up into the air. "Not a spy... an inquisitive creature," she whispered, her old amber eyes dancing with hints of surprise and interest. "You sneak in here every night, reading our records. Yes, we know," she chuckled lightly at his shocked expression. "You could make a great scholar," she whispered admirably, turning him round in the air.

"Maybe," the captive strained. "But," he struggled against his bonds, feeling his own wrist loosen within her grasp. "I couldn't know such things without wanting to help. A Holy One is going to Earth, correct?"

Shocked expressions hit each one of the prophets for the briefest instance.

"What's this?" the captive continued. "The forty-second planet visited by a Demon Lord?"

"Forty-third," another Prophet corrected.

"_Forty-third,"_ the captive spat. "Forty-three planets visited by a Demon Lord, fifteen of which have survived the visit, only to be 'purged' by a Holy One. Tell me," he sneered, glaring down at the Elder, "it's well known the Prophet council predicts each attack, why not help?"

"Child," she sighed softly, shaking her head. "We cannot hope to defeat a Holy One. Every creature has traces of corruption. What use would our interference bring? The Emparites do not interfere with the outside world, such is our custom."

"And _that_," he growled, "is _our_ corruption. And if you don't want to help..." he balled his fist, feeling heat swell around and within, "then I refuse to belong to the Emparite race!"

In one movement, fire burst from his hand, burning against the oaken doors behind him, setting them ablaze in an instant. With the Elder's lapse in concentration, he fell back to the ground, taking the moment to launch a stream of fire towards the advancing prophet, dancing back away from his own flames.

"A _devále_..." the Elder hissed contemptuously. "Everyone, cleanse these halls of such a creature!"

Hearing those words, the 'devále' turned and fled from the doors. Working his way through the marble halls, he aimed towards the library's parking lot, where there were vehicles aplenty for his escape. Added to that, each vehicle on their planet was capable of inter-stellar travel, helping his escape perfectly.

Shoes squeaking against the floors, he ran past the various objects being thrown at him, keeping enough speed to avoid the telekinetic grasp of the Prophets.

Heart racing, he saw the start of the parking lot, his legs burning as they continued to lead him towards a vehicle. It didn't matter what one, he just needed a minute to break into it and jumpstart it, and then he could escape. He was close...

"_Azeal!!!"_

...but not close enough.

His heart almost literally stopped upon hearing the voice bellow his name... the same voice that had made most of his life a living nightmare. Prophet Ickes, the man in charge of teaching all Emparite children the beliefs of their people, and the furthering of their natural powers.

"Azeal..." Ickes whispered condescendingly, shaking his head. He was younger than the other prophets, noticeable instantly by his head of black hair. Every step and gesture overflowed with arrogance and hate, making the very air around him cold and stale.

"Azeal," he whispered again, this time with the ghost of a smirk. "To think... all this time you were a devále... here was I merely thinking you incompetent." He smirked once more, looking up at the starry sky before letting out a soft laugh. "A shame really... to think that inquisitive mind will not get to benefit our race. But, alas," he shrugged, and looked back at him, "Deváles like you hinder our entire race."

"The secret's out," Azeal whispered, trying to maintain his calm. Ickes was an empath, like all Emparites - bar the devále. "But," he continued, shaking his head as a wind started to gather around his hands. "I'd rather be an outcast than a tool."

Ickes never saw what hit him. Gale force winds suddenly slammed into him, knocking the man off his feet, making him land in a crumpled heap some distance away, completely unconscious. Instantly Azeal ran at him, crouching down and searching his pockets.

"Come on..." he whispered. "I've got to have some luck... gotcha!" he declared victoriously, finding a small set of keys within the man's pockets. He glared back at the way he came, gathering fire around his fist before throwing it back into the building, showering it with an explosion of flames.

Smoke billowing out around the compound, Azeal took the cover as his opportunity to escape, leaving his indifferent world behind.

If the various mythological texts were right, Earth had little over a year before it would receive the fury and destruction that a Holy One wrought.

**To be continued...**

**

* * *

**

And thus begins a new story. It's my first time writing anything for Teen Titans, so please drop a review to tell me how I'm doing.

I thank everyone that's clicked on this to have a read, and hopefully you enjoy it enough to continue reading. Don't be afraid to ask questions by review or PM, I'm always happy to try to explain my thoughts behind a story, and I won't bite. Constructive criticism is also greatly appreciated!

So, stay tuned!


	2. Introductions: Contact

_**Teen Titans**_

**_Corruption's End_**

**Introductions; Contact  
**

* * *

"_You remember what I told you a lifetime ago?"_

"_I remember. What about it?"_

"_I can feel it burning through me now."_

"_We can still help."_

"_I'm beyond helping now..."_

_

* * *

_Quiet.

The silence all around her was deafening, a brilliant paradox that Raven had found herself wishing for countless times. But now... it just seemed strange... it was more of a vacuum. She slid open the door to her room, poking her head out to glance into the darkened hallways. The background noises were prevalent now; she could hear the cries of the gulls outside, the hum of electronics... but no other sound reached her ears.

The sorceress frowned, subconsciously biting against her bottom lip. Every time such a situation had occurred before... it hadn't ended well, to say the least. Taking a steeling breath, she gathered black ether around her hands, ready for anything.

It was when her foot stepped in something wet and sticky that her heart hit the floor. She glanced down, eyes burning with tears as she noticed the unmistakable tang of blood in the air.

_It's just one of Beast Boy's pranks,_ she tried to reassure herself. Even as the thought crossed her mind, a darker part tried to rush forth, to grasp at the sweet life trickling over the floor. Yet again, her half-demon nature had stopped her cold, this time in shattering her hastily thought illusion.

It was blood. Human blood.

And it lead straight into the common room.

Raven wasn't sure when she left the hallway, for it seemed that one moment she was there, the next standing in a proverbial bloodbath. It was splashed all over the walls, the ceiling, _everything_. If it came from one person... they were definitely dead. Two... then maybe they could be healed. _Maybe._

_It's not right._ The same three words were hammering in her skull as she hid her face in the shadows of her hood, trying to hide the saline weakness that slid from her eyes. They'd defeated the Brotherhood of Evil... they'd _frozen_ almost every villain going. Furthermore, whoever had gotten in had managed to bypass all of Cyborg's security, and do... _this_ without ever alerting Raven.

It felt like fear pumped through her veins, not blood.

All these things were considered in the few seconds it took Raven to follow the blood spatter back to a single source, whereupon her eyes widened a moment before her breakfast returned full force.

In a crumpled heap on the floor was a mess of blood, muscle, veins and meat. There was no skin on it anymore... no organs... nothing more than a dripping carcass deposited unceremoniously on the floor. Except for a small black-trimmed mask which hung almost tauntingly on the corpse's raw face.

Her heartbeat thundered in her chest, even as she wiped the remaining bile away from her mouth.

"_Robin..."_ the name left her mouth in a soft whisper, surprising even Raven herself. The single name flung her into action, for not moments later she was running from what remained of her leader.

Her communicator flipped open in her hand; she glanced at the five pulsing dots in near-distance. She knew one was what remained of Robin, and her heart wept as she tried to block mental images of her other friends in a similar state.

She rounded a bend, finding the next victim as she slipped on something wet, and fell face-to-face with a pair of white, glossy eyes.

Raven didn't want to look, but found herself drawn to look at the identity of the corpse. Starfire's glistening emerald orbs shone no more, her hair sprayed everywhere, mouth hung open with her tongue splayed limply out of it.

And that was all she could see of Starfire.

Where the alien's body should have been, there was nothing but empty air. Raven couldn't help but let out a scream as she backed away, unable to tear her eyes away from her friend's bodiless head.

"Azar... no...." she whispered as she backed against the wall, using the wall itself to push her back up, not trusting her own legs at the moment. A glance into Starfire's room made Raven wish that she could wipe her mind of what she saw.

Starfire's body was nothing but a burnt-out corpse, blackened and sticky, leaving a sickly charred smell in the air. Nearby, she saw Silkie pinned to a wall by a splintered bed post, as dead as everyone else Raven had seen so far.

Fear took hold as Raven backed into the wall, summoning a portal to somewhere else in the tower. A shadowy culmination of magic let her step out into the training room, which thankfully was devoid of any signs of struggle.

Raven wasn't sure when she'd started crying, but was only sure of it now. Tears flooded from her eyes with no remorse, her body mourning what her mind remained numb to. She glanced back down at her communicator, noticing the two pulsing lights she hadn't yet checked. She knew, a part of her _screamed_ at her that her other friends were dead too... but she had to see it with her own eyes.

When she arrived at the garage, however, she couldn't bring herself to find what remained of Cyborg's own body. She saw the fractured parts of his metallic self scattered everywhere, sparking dangerously, pools of blood and Cyborg's engine fuel mixing into one. They led to somewhere behind the car, where Raven was sure the organic parts of her friend remained.

She couldn't look.

She whispered a silent prayer in her head before running to her last remaining friend, heart beating faster than ever. She needed someone to be alive, someone to comfort her, to wash away everything she'd seen.

What she saw, however, made everything else seem like as serious as a cartoon.

Beast Boy had been _scattered_ round his room. Blood dripped from everything, as well as small green chunks of meat. It hung from the ceiling, the walls, was stuck in the carpet... Beast Boy was everywhere and nowhere at once.

She couldn't help it. A piercing, wail of a scream left Raven's lips, her sanity threatening to shatter at the brutal massacre of all of her friends. She dropped to her knees, pounding furiously against the floor, until she found something staring up at her.

It was an eye.

Beast Boy's eye.

It had been ripped out, and was left staring blankly at the world, and now at her.

Something broke within Raven. All her emotions turned to grief, to hatred, then to anger. She felt the tell-tale warning of her eyes burning in their sockets, the world seeming to coat over in a haze of red. And she did nothing to stop it. She became nothing more than shadow, four piercing, blood red eyes staring out from her endless darkness. She embraced the hate, swearing revenge on whoever did this to her friends.

Suddenly, a bright white light hit her with unbelievable force, and Raven was sure she wet herself as the figure within made way for her.

* * *

Screams pierced the air of the Titan's Tower. They were made of pure fear and terror, and froze the heart of everyone able to hear.

And Beast Boy identified them at once.

"Raven!" he cried even as he raced to her room in such blind panic, he remained in human form. His heart beat a mile a minute as he ran to her, nearly throwing her door off its hinges as he raced into her room, finding the girl clutching handfuls of bedsheets, unable to do anything more than scream.

"Raven!" he cried again, darting forwards as he wrapped his arms around her, desperately trying to calm her down. In any other circumstance, such close contact would have led to Raven murdering him where he stood, but now she remained unable to do anything but shake in pure fear.

"B-beast boy?" she croaked, blinking teary eyes at him. Her voice was barely anything more than a whisper, making her sound so afraid it scared even Beast Boy. "I-is that you?"

"'Course Rae," he grinned, hoping to somehow wash away her fear with humour. "Is there anyone else you'd want to wake up with?"

Despite the fear that ran through her, Raven managed to glare at him. "Shut up," she hissed, not a moment before she buried her face in his shoulder, holding on to him as if her life depended on it.

Only Beast Boy's subtle head shake kept everyone else from ruining the moment.

* * *

'_Destination; Earth. Approximate travel time; fifteen-point-four hours. Are you sure you wish to travel to Planet Earth?"_

"Yes I'm sure!" Azeal snarled, his fists hammering against the computer's control console. He glanced outside, taking a deep look at all of space's beauty. His eyes scanned it all, stopping on the planet he was leaving, sparing one last glance at the silvery surface of his home Planet. Scoffing, he turned back, focusing forwards.

"Computer, estimate travel time to Earth if we engage thrusters," he commanded, his voice lacking anything but seriousness.

"_Approximate travel time will be reduced by four-point-nine hours, giving a new travel time of ten-point-five hours. Are you su-"_

"Yes I'm sure!" Azeal sniped again, silently cursing the computer's programming. While it _was_ a great safety protocol to have every command double-checked, it was extremely annoying.

"_Acknowledged. Plotting course now. Please enjoy your ride."_

Azeal blinked at the computer console once more. "Ten and a half hours with nothing to do? Great," he drawled, folding his arms and leaning his head against the windows of his vehicle. "Imagination, don't fail me now."

* * *

Since Raven's 'episode' not even an hour past, she'd returned back to normal – as normal as could be for her – even as everyone seemed to try to tiptoe around the subject. That left it to Beast Boy to try to find out exactly what happened to her-

"No."

The one word cut through the shapeshifter's bravado, even before he'd sat next to Raven. He shrieked and morphed instantly into a turtle, hiding within his own shell. As he realised Raven wasn't going to murder him, he became human again, trying a second time to find out what was wrong with her.

"Rae-"

"Rae-ven."

"Right!" Beast Boy squeaked, hiding from the cold glare she was giving him. They both knew that everyone was busying themselves nearby, only hovering to find out what was wrong with Raven. Cyborg was making a meat-feast of a lunch, while Robin and Starfire were supposedly in their own little world, with Robin reading a story to the Tamaranean.

"So Raven," Beast Boy started again, trying in some way to coax her from her metaphorical shell. "What exactly... well..." he stumbled, trying to word his question safely. "What freaked you out so much?"

"It was a nightmare Beast Boy," Raven growled, her teeth clenching shut against each other. Granted she'd spent almost ten minutes afterwards just _holding_ Beast Boy, making sure he was still there, but now she was pretending it never happened.

It confused the shapeshifter to no end.

"But, was it _just_ a nightmare?"

Raven's growl came out as more of a snarl, "Yes." Deep down, she knew it wasn't. Her dreams were never that vivid unless they were a premonition... and even then, she'd never experienced one as outright _terrifying_ as that. Even now, she couldn't wipe the images of her friends in their various states of death, which was why she was sat with them all now, basking in their presence – even if she wouldn't admit it.

Beast Boy's ears drooped as the smallest of frowns crossed his features. "If you say so Raven..." He wanted to know more, he really did, but he could tell when it was advisable to press something with Raven, and when not to.

And at that moment, a loud klaxon flared through their building, drowning them all in red light.

It seemed something else was telling Beast Boy not to press the matter either. Even so, he couldn't help but notice the way Raven nearly leapt from her skin at the sound of the alarm, and the silent fear building behind her eyes.

In a flash, Robin was at the main computer's console, downloading as much information as he could. "It looks like something's attacking downtown Jump..." he frowned, his mask following the movement perfectly. "Though whoever it is, they're only staying within the one-block radius."

"That's weird," Beast Boy commented, speaking the thought they all shared.

"It gets even weirder," Robin continued as he whirled through the information. "There's a video feed now, we can pull up the image..." He pressed a few more keys, pulling up a live video feed on their central monitor. Causing all the destruction, they couldn't help but notice-

"Cinderblock?!" Beast Boy exclaimed, unable to believe what he saw. "I thought he was frozen with everyone else?"

"Apparently not," Cyborg observed. "If someone's busted him out, that means there's gotta be something else going on here."

"That doesn't matter now," Robin hissed. His eyes glanced at the screen once more before a command erupted from his throat. "Titans, move out!"

* * *

A hail of bricks flew in every direction as the stone behemoth that was Cinderblock put his fist through another building, shattering it's foundations in one powerful punch. It shattered the building's support on that side, causing the three-storey building to let out a loud groan before it began to topple over.

A humungous crash accompanied the building's collapse, the sheer force of the blow managing to send a few people on their feet. Panic filled everyone as they tried to escape as quickly as they could, praying they could reach safety before the creature found them, or before the expected conflict between it and the Teen Titans.

Another almighty roar escaped Cinderblock's being as he lifted a car above his head, throwing it carelessly at another, causing them both to roll together into another building.

Watching the carnage, one suited man couldn't help but shake his head. "'Move to Jump', they said. 'It will further your career', they said. No-one said anything about _continual _terror!" he shouted, his voice dropping to nothing more than a pathetic squeak as he felt a large shadow drop over him. Trembling, he looked up at a giant of stone, and managed hardly anything more than a gulp and a terrified 'Oh God', before the wind was knocked out of him.

Eyes scrunched shut, the man barely felt himself touch ground with his feet. Opening them, he found himself now looking down at the Teen Titan's leader himself, and mumbled nothing more than a hasty 'thanks' before he ran for his life.

Robin spared a moment-long glance at the man before his attention snapped to Cinderblock, who was lumbering after them, even as the remaining Titans gathered behind Robin.

"One chance Cinderblock," Robin growled, "who hired you?"

_BWOOAARR!!!_

Robin's eyes widened by a slight degree as Cinderblock raced towards them all. "Titans, go!" he roared, leaping into the air in one simple, brilliant bound.

Cinderblock roared as black ether crept up his arm, taking hold of it before it punched into his own face. His bellows of pain let him become distracted enough to take a blast of sound to the face, causing cracks to form in the stony surface.

If Cinderblock was angry before, now he was _furious_. He grabbed at the tail of the green ankylosaurus and whirled it over his head like a chain mace, letting the creature fly away into Raven, knocking them both away.

His eyes shot up as Starfire let out a furious war cry, and his curiosity was met with a barrage of concussive emerald blasts, each strong enough to stagger the creature.

As Starfire twirled in the air, Robin suddenly dove at Cinderblock, his foot meeting stone face in a destructive blow, managing to topple the rock giant himself.

"You had your chance Cinderblock," the Boy Wonder growled.

Flying just above the ground, Raven felt a scowl cross her features. "I don't like it," she whispered as Cinderblock remained motionless on the floor. "He usually takes more than this to take down."

"Why complain?" Beast Boy laughed, clapping his hands together triumphantly. "We took down block face in record time! We should be celebrating, not moping!"

Starfire felt an uneasy frown cross her features. "Cinderblock is able to continue... why does he not?"

Beast Boy rapidly felt all sense of optimism fly out the window. "He's given up?"

"No. He's stalling for something," Robin observed quickly, eyes narrowing behind his mask.

"Stalling for what?" Cyborg grunted as he levelled his sonic cannon, aiming another shot.

"Whatever it is," Robin growled, "it's not going to be good."

* * *

"_Approaching Earth. Calculated time remaining; five minutes."_

"_Finally,"_ Azeal groaned, wanting nothing more now than to get out and stretch his legs – even if it was on an alien planet. "Computer, activate landing protocol Alpha-six-oh-three."

Static and buzzing met his command as the computer processed his words. _"Unable to comply,"_ the mechanical voice wheezed between bursts of more buzzing.

"Huh?" The word slipped from Azeal's mouth before he even thought. "Okay, engage landing protocol Beta-nine-two-four."

More static, followed by another, "_Unable to comply."_

"Great," Azeal scowled at the computer. "Is there _anything _you can do?!"

"_I can cross my fingers for you?"_

He deadpanned. "That's not funny."

"_Apologies. Your complaint has been logged. For further assistance, please contact-"_

A horrible screeching noise suddenly sounded within the ship, causing Azeal to clamp his hands over his ears, trying in vain to block the noise out. When it finished, he gingerly lifted his hands and looked up to see a screened image over the ship's windscreen.

"Prophet Ickes?" he choked out in shock. His eyes widened, and he was suddenly hit with an overwhelming sense of claustrophobia.

"Now, now, Azeal," Ickes tutted, sounding as condescending as ever. Azeal could see the bloodshot eyes the man held, and took some comfort in knowing he'd hurt the man when he knocked him out. "You didn't think you could escape that easily, did you?"

"Well..." Azeal glanced around his vehicle, "I have, haven't I?" It wasn't sarcastic, but a genuine question. Ickes was never one to admit defeat.

Ickes smirked victoriously. "You seem to forget, that is _my_ ship you're driving, and I can activate it remotely if it's ever stolen."

Like that, Azeal's heart dropped.

"Of course, you're out of the way of most remote control now," Ickes continued. Azeal let out a silent breath of relief, but held back some reservations. There had to be something else the man was keeping quiet...

"But you do remember what happens to a devále, don't you?"

Azeal's heart stopped.

"T-they're branded," he choked out. "If they manage to escape being cleansed... so that they're never allowed passage back home." He tried in vain to keep his voice composed, while inside his stomach bubbled with sheer trepidation.

"I taught you well," Ickes gloated, his fingers hovering lightly above the ring on his thumb. "Now, since you were my student, I am the one tasked with branding you." Suddenly, a sinister smile crossed his features. "And whose ship do you happen to have ran off with?"

Azeal gulped. "Yours."

"Mine," Ickes announced victoriously. "Now, you remember that remote control I mentioned?" he asked, flicking his ring. Machinery suddenly whirred in front of Azeal, and he found some of the computer's controls sliding away, being replaced with an empty hole. He could feel the heat of something burning deep within, and tried as much as he could to get away. Unfortunately, the seatbelts could only be removed when the ship wasn't moving.

"So, you may have won the battle, Azeal," Ickes gloated. "But I have won the war." The transmission cut off abruptly, leaving Azeal to glance fearfully at the black void before him.

He caught one look at the symbol before it shot at him, branding forever against his face. Unimaginable pain blinded him as he screamed, and he lost complete control of the ship.

* * *

The answer came to Cyborg's earlier question as his optical sensor caught sight of something in the sky, heading towards them all with burning vigour.

"Everyone, scatter!" he bellowed, grabbing Beast Boy as he threw himself from the road, forcing them both a considerable distance away. A high pitching sound of metal buckling under pressure hit their ears a moment before pure heat blasted past them, where after there was a loud explosion, raining them all with little pieces of stone.

Raven was the first to recover, and the first to see what caused such an impact. "Figures," she grunted. "We do the hard work, but a flying Ford Fiesta takes the credit."

Four sets of eyes looked at her and then the wreckage, where it seemed Cinderblock had tried to catch the falling space debris. Instead, it seemed to have pushed past the behemoth's grip, and thrust him into the ground, after which they guessed the debris' fuel tanks had exploded.

"Dude..." Beast Boy whispered, tracing the skid marks along the road. "What is that thing?"

"It appears to be a space vessel," Starfire whispered, getting a better viewpoint from the air. "But I do not recognise it's design."

Cyborg held up his arm, scanners running a full diagnostic of the material and design. "I'm not getting any hits either. It's completely new to me." He processed all the information relayed to him in a string of one's and zero's before a curse jumped out of his mouth. "Looks like we've got signs of life in there though."

"Aliens?" Beast Boy shrieked, morphing instantly into a feral green tiger which snarled at the wreckage.

"What's Starfire then?" Cyborg grunted. "Chopped liver?"

The Tamaranean flew closer, confusion etched over her features. "I do not understand. Why am I the 'chopped liver'?" She blinked, staring between them both.

"No time Star," Robin grunted, already leaping towards the wreckage. He leant closer, squinting into what seemed to be the windows of the ship. He saw red, and lots of it. Even Beast Boy couldn't have missed the sheer amount of blood, which seemed to be pumping from a branding rod of some sort poking out from the alien's chest. "Guys, we need to get it out of here!"

Raven glanced once at the injuries, and felt a shudder pass through her. Already, she could tell she wasn't going to enjoy it being back at the tower.

_**To be continued...**_


	3. Introductions: First Impressions

_**Teen Titans**_

**_Corruption's End_**

**Introductions; First Impressions  
**

* * *

"_Sometimes... all you need to do is hope."_

"_There's the problem... I __**am**__ hope."_

"_What?!"_

"_I'm hope... yet I'm the end of it..."_

"_You're not making any sense!"_

"_You'll understand soon enough."_

* * *

"I can't heal him."

The words struck everyone like a lead weight, and suddenly all eyes fell to Raven, who was beginning to stand back up, blue glow fading from her hands.

"Why?" It was Robin who asked the question dancing on everyone's minds, glaring at Raven in the recesses of her hood.

"He's an alien," the empathy grunted, violent eyes glancing to the body below her. Violent red hair darted over his head, though it was hard to tell whether that was its natural colour, or whether it was merely stained with blood – for he was _covered_ in it.

"His physiology is different to humans," Raven continued, eyes shifting back up to her friends. "I don't know his body structure well enough to heal him; I could end up swapping the locations of a vein and an artery." Her words hung heavily, and all eyes now sunk down to the unconscious alien, healed as best Raven could. "I've put him in a meditative trance; it'll speed up his natural healing process. I can't do anything more."

"Well... if we can't bring him to the tower..." Beast Boy mumbled, "and we obviously can't bring him to a hospital... where do we take him?"

The question was met with silence. They needed to act, and fast, but they had no idea of where they could take him. They needed somewhere that dealt with aliens or metahumans...

"S.T.A.R. Labs!" Cyborg exclaimed, pounding a fist into an open palm. "They deal with metahuman injuries and criminals, and they've got most of the best and advanced medical technology."

Robin glanced at the alien, and made the snap decision instantly. "S.T.A.R. Labs it is. Guys, load him into the T-Car as softly as you can; we need to heal him to find out why exactly he came here in the first place."

* * *

Starfire wasn't sure when they'd left the T-car and made it into the dreary white-washed walls of the laboratory-hospital, but she was sure it happened recently. The alien they had found had bled all inside of Cyborg's car, which the semi-robotic teen was now busy cleaning. No more than half an hour could have passed, she reflected, as the long line on the clock opposite had yet to make a full half-circle rotation.

Robin and Raven were currently talking to one of the nurses, explaining everything they knew of the alien. Raven had an advantage; she had seen his body structure when she tried to heal him, and now she was attempting to explain it as best she could.

And so, it left Starfire in the waiting room with Beast Boy. While she did enjoy the company of her friends, there were only so many of his jokes that she could take.

"How long are they gonna be?" Beast Boy groaned, letting a bored sigh from his mouth.

"That would depend entirely on how quickly they are able to repair him," Starfire answered, happy for something to focus on. "Raven's magic showed that he had a broken sternum, as well as three cracked ribs alongside a perforation to several non-major veins, and many broken capillaries."

Beast Boy's completely blank face met her explanation. Starfire let out a sheepish giggle, scratching at her cheek. "He is very injured."

"Gotcha!" The changeling smiled, understanding a lot more.

"I don't like it." Both Starfire and Beast Boy could _feel_ the scowl in Robin's words as he came back to them, standing stoically in thought. "Cinderblock was stalling for him, so that means whoever... _whatever_ he is... he's important enough for someone to un-freeze Cinderblock and send him to collect this alien."

Starfire glanced over at both Robin and Raven. "Did the surgeon of chiefs not find any form of identification?"

"Chief of surgery." Robin corrected automatically. "And no Star, they don't check the victim for identification, the nurses do. They didn't find anything. We need to find his name ourselves, as well as try to discover who arranged for Cinderblock to be thawed out."

"So, who we got then?" Beast Boy asked. He wanted to input on the conversation somehow, but couldn't think of anyone that they'd encountered that was smart enough to orchestrate this, and not currently under the deep-freeze.

"The only person we know who could arrange it, who isn't frozen is Slade," Raven stated, sounding incredibly serious. "Of course, we don't know that for sure," she continued, "we haven't seen anything of him since...my birthday." Her last two words came out as nothing more than a whisper, though Beast Boy did turn a shade lighter at her statement. He'd seen him when he was chasing after Terra - or at least who he thought to be her - but he'd yet to mention it, as the Slade he fought was nothing more than a robot.

"If Cinderblock is now unfrozen, is it not possible someone else may be too?" asked Starfire. After all, why go through the trouble of unfreezing only one villain?

"There's always another possibility," said Robin, his mind processing every scenario he could think of. "Our 'casualty' here could be the person behind it all."

Silence met his statement, the words hanging heavily between the four heroes.

"But," Beast Boy started after the pause, "he's _hurt_. Surely that means he's got nothing to do with it?"

"Which is a perfect cover up," said Raven, rapidly catching on to Robin's train of thought. "If he started this whole thing, what better way to get in with us than by 'conveniently' crashing into Cinderblock, and being so injured that we'd have to take him in to treat him?" Her words were left unspoken afterwords; _Terra_ had done almost the same, who was to say it wouldn't happen again?

Starfire watched silently, considering both sides of the argument. Terra had tricked them all before, and even now, the wounds were still sore. As much as now she wanted to comfort Robin, to tell him his beliefs were unfounded... she believed it could be true herself. Added to that, she had already been told by him; when the mask was on, Robin was only business. Robin was only 'her' Robin in private, or when the mask came off.

She let out a small disgruntled breath before Cyborg's shadow suddenly loomed over them all, a grim expression set on his mouth. Inquisition met his stony face, bringing forth the words behind his grimace.

"I know it might be obvious; but the blood wasn't human." He folded his arms across his chest, mentally reciting the results his tests had produced. "Chemical reactions showed an abnormally high concentration of cyanide. It seems like instead of a human metabolism of producing urea as a waste by-product, our injured friend here produces cyanide as a waste product."

Three nods met Cyborg's explanation, alongside Beast Boy's blank face. He lifted a hand, finger outstretched, until Raven pre-empted his question.

"His waste products contain poison," she simplified.

Appreciating the translation, Beast Boy nodded. He really needed to get around to reading something intellectual; he was fed up of not understanding the scientific jargon his friends all understood as clearly as English.

"Titans?"

The five superheroes spun around to see a tall, slender brunette walking towards them, covered in a white lab coat, with a clipboard in her left hand. The woman had an air of authority about her, and walked towards them as if she were the only doctor in the world.

"I'm Doctor Charli Goodwinn," she announced, holding a hand out for them to shake. She held out her clipboard, pressing it into one of Robin's hands. "This file contains all we know about the casualty you brought in. He belongs to a race of aliens known as the _Emparites_, who live on the planet X'ienaqs."

Beast Boy was completely baffled. "She-han-nax?"

"_She-han-axe,"_ Doctor Goodwinn corrected. "It's a name that the Emparites use for other species to say their planet's name – even Tamaranians have trouble with the correct pronunciation." A small smile was thrown at Starfire, who actually looked insulted at the thought. "It's a corruption of synapse; the Emparites saw that it was a structure allowing signals to transfer cell to cell, and with their powers revolving around neurological persuasion, they decided that it suited them well."

It was without surprise that the Titans saw Beast Boy's eyes glazed over in complete confusion.

"The Emparite population all have powers of some sort, usually within telepathy and telekinesis," the Doctor continued. "Being born without a power there is about as rare as being born _with_ one here."

"How... do you know all this?" Cyborg found himself asking. Quite often he'd upgraded himself by using S.T.A.R. Labs technology; but he never found any sort of data fields like these on what he used.

"Believe it or not, we sometimes heal members of the Justice League, and detain their criminals." She smiled as five sets of interested gazes met her face, hanging on her words. "But their race seem to be... less understanding, compared to our own race."

"Understanding?" Raven grunted. "That's a bit vague..."

"Yes," Doctor Goodwinn nodded, folding her arms. "But I'm afraid that's the best way to describe it. The only data we have is from a handful of subjects; unfortunately Emparites do not have much contact outside of their planter. But from what we know, any Emparite who does not have a power of telepathy or telekinesis... is _culled._"

"I don't think he's a telepath."

Eyes whipped round to Raven, who looked awkward until the sudden focus of attention. She pulled a face, glancing towards the operating room. "When I scanned him to heal him... I didn't feel any sort of telepathic powers. I felt..." She stopped, unable to find the words she needed to describe it. "He can use magic," she explained, trying her best to find words to pin down her thoughts. "But... there's something strange about it... like he's only skimming the surface of his abilities."

"Wait," said Robin, taking in everything she said. They had an alien from a race of telepaths able to use magic? "How can you be sure of that?"

"Because I can use magic too, remember?" Raven responded in a flat tone, trying to work frustration and suspicion from her voice. "In a person's body, there's a channel of magic that flows with them, almost like a second bloodstream. But instead of a heart, they have a 'pool' of magic," she explained, sounding increasingly tired with having to explain everything. "If people can't use it, they don't have a 'pool'. With him... it's like the equivalent of a _sea _of magic... but..." she stopped again, thinking of an analogy for them. "Think of the Dead Sea. It's filled with so much salt; you can only float on it. That's what his magic is like, he's 'walking' along the surface of it... seemingly unable to delve deeper."

Robin felt another frown cross over his features. "Is it possible for him to give off such an impression?" He still wasn't letting go of the theory their mystery guest could be a spy.

Raven shrugged. "I can't say."

"If that's so, that could very well be the reason why he's on Earth," Doctor Goodwinn interjected. "If I was going to be killed for being born with something, I'd damn sure run as far away as I could." She stopped for a moment, drumming her fingers against her arm. "But that is all I can tell you for now. In the mean time, return to your tower, go about your day to day lives. He's not going to be waking up anytime soon, and I don't have the insurance cover in this place to let four metahumans and a former sidekick of Gotham's finest running around."

"Fine," Robin voiced his acceptance, nodding his thanks as he tucked the file under his arm. "But as soon as-"

"-he wakes up, call you?" Doctor Goodwinn cut in, her voice sounding as dead as her patience. "Fine. But now, go. You're drowning me in paperwork already just by talking to me about all this. There _is_ a patient-doctor confidentiality treatment, even if the patient is comatose."

One by one the Titans nodded and filed out, minds all on the new person they'd found, different questions running through each of their minds.

* * *

People always deserved the right to live.

People with powers could always become warriors.

Warriors deserved to die with honour.

And thus, it confounded Starfire to no end to know that Emparites would kill those that did not have the powers they wanted. It was like selective breeding of the cows; breeding those with the best milk production. Instead, it seemed the race were selectively breeding amongst themselves.

Letting out a sigh, Starfire flicked through Galfore's notes, reading through what he'd wrote about various different races. She knew Tamaran had traded with other cultures before, she just never knew that her K'norfka had ever met such creatures.

What he'd written though, wasn't anymore insightful than what the doctor had told her in the lab of stars.

Letting out another sigh, Starfire rolled over on her bed, staring down at the floor, leaning on her elbows. "Oh, hello Silkie," she said happily as the larva slithered out from underneath her bed. A series of unintelligible chirps came out from the creature, causing Starfire to laugh and hold the larva closer.

"I do agree; the problems of this Emparite are most unsettling." She smiled at Silkie, laughing as he wriggled around in her grip. "I do agree, food does sound glorious! I am sure I have some zorka berries in the kitchen."

More chirps came from the larva, prompting Starfire to giggle as she floated towards the kitchen, all worries lost as she cradled her pet.

* * *

Business as usual had resumed.

However, for the Titans, this usually composed having to fight off a superpowered criminal – often the same few – before shipping them back off to prison, where they somehow always managed to escape out of. Robin was starting to believe that a few guards were taking bribes to 'forget' to lock the prisoner in completely, leading to them running rampant in the streets again.

Raven however thought that their continual presence in the city was due to an increase in laziness in the police, alongside a number of other factors. According to Robin's reports, as well as Cyborg's own first-hand testimonies, there was far less crime before the Titans appeared in Jump. The sorceress figured that the villains all tried Jump now, in order for a quick rise to power; what criminal wouldn't respect someone that had defeated the Teen Titans? Added to that, the police force were beginning to call in the Titans every time a costumed villain appeared, just in case they had powers – though no one could really hold it against them; normal police training wasn't exactly how to deal with people that can regenerate, or people that can spit acid.

No information was coming as to the alien's identity, either. They had taken a sample of his DNA and compared it to both their own and the League's databases... and yielded no results. Starfire knew nothing of the Emparite race, and had found nothing in Galfore's diaries, Robin had found nothing on them, save for a few seldom reports of an Emparite smuggler being arrested for something, or a telepath using their influence for selfish gain.

Beast Boy as Cyborg would try to figure out the components in the ship, as well as salvage anything left. While it was true Beast Boy lacked the technical knowledge to analyse the ship as Cyborg could, he _did_ have the advanced sense of any animal in creation – physical and fictional – at his disposal – granted he'd have to relay smells and tastes by his vague descriptions, though he had quickly learnt that the metallic iron tang in blood was far different to refined iron ore.

Business as usual.

Doctor Goodwinn had forwarded Robin numerous reports in the meantime, though nothing was of major use. It was only a general status report; he responded better to this drug treatment then that one... his general physiological difference to humans, how his bones were slowly rebuilding.

Though the reports _did_ have their uses. Apparently he had a stronger skeleton than humans; it was apparently as strong as diamond, leading the Titans to wonder just how much force had been behind that metal pole in his chest. If it had pierced a normal human, it would have gone through them completely. The Doctor had also reported that he had significant facial scarring outside of his injuries from the crash, though had left out any details as to their size and appearance. All that was in the report was that they could not be healed by any treatment known to mankind – even plastic surgery couldn't change it.

No wonder Raven couldn't heal him at the time.

It was only at the end of yet another mundane day, after dealing with Doctor Light yet again, did the tower receive the phone call from Doctor Goodwinn that they'd all been fearing.

* * *

Everything seemed to pile up on her conscience. What was said... it was true... all of it. All this time, they'd done nothing... leaving everyone else to suffer.

It needed to change.

Walking softly down the halls, the Emparite Elder felt a weight sit heavily on her old bones. Azeal... the devále; he'd pointed out the many flaws within their population. If a Holy One did ever seek to come to X'ienaqs, they'd be doomed.

Even so... there was something playing on her mind. He had escaped being culled... and she was a woman that didn't like leaving any loose ends.

With that thought in mind, she loaded up one of the technical resources, and made her way onto the extranet. A few places on Earth used the inter-stellar internet upgrade; she just hoped that the message would make way to someone who could carry out her orders.

* * *

Lights flashed continually around him, alarms blaring on and off, warnings running along the screen before him.

The scenery suddenly began blurring past the windows, and the metallic structure of the ship began burning up as it ploughed through the atmosphere.

Suddenly, they crashed, and everything exploded in a sea of red.

Pain flared through him, pulsing continually with every breath. He could feel something cold piercing through his chest, rapidly heating up with the life's liquid leaking from the blinding pain in his sternum. Everything was in a mix; some parts of him were cold and numb, others had red hot pain attacking every nerve ending. Neither was preferential.

There was a loud roar, followed by the sound of metal crunching under extreme pressure. He heard growling somewhere, followed by a loud scream of pain, and the ship crashed yet again.

His arm was bent awkwardly, and his legs were both trapped underneath the metal of the ship. Everything was a hazy blur, colours and shapes pulsing in his vision in tandem with his rapidly decreasing heartbeat.

And somewhere, in the distance, he heard voices.

"...get it out... here!"

"...heal him..."

"...alien..."

He struggled to reach out, to warn them, but everything died in a brilliant blue light.

* * *

The slow, rhythmic electronic beep was the first indication he was still alive.

Everything blurred into one long minute for a while. He knew he was fading in and out of consciousness, as the table – or bed – that he was on fluctuated in texture. It would be soft, then not there at all, then hard, then not there again, repeating again and again.

The beeping was suddenly louder, reaching into his ears with increasing volume.

His eyes began to flutter, and he became aware of the strange feeling in his nose. It was like a tube had been placed up each nostril. He panicked, and in doing so attempted to breathe in... only to find he couldn't, as there was a tube placed down his throat too.

Panic flared through him full force, and his eyes suddenly found the will to work, snapping open in an instant.

He was in a strange bed, with metallic railings at either side. Primitive machines were hooked up next to his bed, as well as the beeping machine he'd heard for some time now. He felt the sensory pads over his body, but paid no attention to them as he continued to struggle to breathe, dimly aware of shouts as he sat bolt upright, trying to pull the offending tube from his throat.

Had his people found him? Were they still trying to kill him, even now? The thoughts clustered in his brain as he tried to think clearer. He batted away hands that came towards, them, stopping them from quickening his demise before strong pairs of hands forced his shoulders down. His throat clamped around the tube as he felt it move around, and with a deep gasp, he felt air rush into his lungs.

"Relax," a female voice came through his ears, even as he gasped for words. "Calm down, you're safe here."

His eyes flicked up, finding a brown haired human woman, hair tied back into a tight bun and a white lab coat cloaking her body. Green eyes met his own, and she offered a tentative smile.

"Relax," she offered again. "Try to calm down. You've just woken up from a three week long coma. Your ship crash landed on Earth almost an hour before you were brought in, and we've been attempting to heal you ever since. All your injuries have been healed... except..." she looked away, her eyes focusing on his scars for a brief moment. "Except for those on your face. We couldn't heal those."

Azeal coughed, feeling his throat clench as he tried to speak. After drinking a glass of water, he coughed again, feeling able to speak again. "You wouldn't be able to," he whispered. "They're designed to resist healing from conventional magic and healers."

Doctor Goodwinn stopped for a moment, wondering about his voice. If she didn't know any better, she would assume that he had lived in America all his life. It sounded like an upper-class accent, though he sounded like he pronounced a 's' like an 'x', and a 'c' like a 'q'.

She pushed those thoughts aside. "My name is Doctor Charli Goodwinn," she offered. "Do you have a name – that I'll be able to pronounce," she added, a soft smile gracing her face.

"Azeal. My name's Azeal," he replied, wincing as he moved to swing his legs off the bed. Blood flow returned to his limbs, and he was plagued with the sudden feeling of pins and needles.

"Nice to meet you Azeal," Doctor Goodwinn greeted. "Pay no mind to the other doctors here; they're only checking up on your vitals, making sure you're okay."

Azeal blinked, staring as the many humans running around, occasionally checking statistics on the machines and noting them down. To tell the truth, he hadn't even noticed them until she pointed them out.

Doctor Goodwinn smiled, though the weariness in her voice reflected how tired she truly was. "I must ask though; why are you here on Earth?"

Azeal took a breath, knowing how bad his words would sound. But they needed to hear them, regardless. "You're all going to die."

Five words that brought the entire lab into mass panic.

_**To be continued...**_


	4. Introductions: Awkward Silence

_**Teen Titans**_

**_Corruption's End_**

**Introductions; Awkward Silence  
**

* * *

"_Sometimes, good and evil want the same thing."_

_Snapshots of their lives buffeted their souls_

_One by one, they felt life draining from their bodies_

_Witnessed by the world, hope fell to dust_

_The Teen Titans were dead._

* * *

Left, left, right, up, down...

"Damnit!"

Left, right, left, down...

"Damn! Stupid game!" Beast Boy grumbled as he threw away the controller, glaring vehemently at the screen. He'd been told the latest cheat codes for _Ninja Monkey Racers IV_, but none of them seemed to be working. All he was getting were continual error messages along the lines of 'Who needs cheats? Noob.'

"I told ya man, cheaters never prosper." Cyborg let out a chuckle as he sat beside Beast Boy, looking at the monitor before them both. "It's just another one of life's lessons."

Outsmarted by a videogame. Brilliant.

"Whatever," the changeling grumbled, making his way purposely from the console. Each day was becoming more mundane than ever; go out, kick bad guy butt, then return back to the day to day fight against boredom. Starfire and Robin had each other to escape it, Raven had her library of magical texts and her meditation, Cyborg had his continual upgrades and inventions... Beast Boy only had video games. They _were_ interesting... but even they could become boring after a while. There were only so many times he could complete a single race track in order to unlock a new track or driver.

He hoped something interesting would happen, soon.

Almost in answer to his hopes, the computer suddenly flared to life, blaring out an obnoxious ringing tune. Robin suddenly leapt from _somewhere_ – Beast Boy was starting to think there were secret tunnels all around the tower – in order to answer the call. He pressed a series of buttons, and suddenly Doctor Goodwinn's face appeared on screen.

"Robin," she stated calmly. "We need you all down here. Your patient has woken."

"Really?" Robin's eyes widened. "What's the situation, why do we need to be there?"

The doctor glanced backwards before letting out a strained sigh. "We've had to sedate him. When he woke up, he began going on about some sort of danger, as well as something about his 'branding'. I'd assume it's something to do with an adverse reaction to his new injuries... but I'd prefer you to come here. If what he says is true, it's best someone like your team deals with it."

Beast Boy was starting to regret ever hoping for anything interesting to happen. "How bad is it doc?" he squeaked, hoping that it wouldn't be _too_ bad.

Doctor Goodwinn's nostrils flared before she glared down the screen. "Just get here a.s.a.p."

"Alright, we're on our way," Robin told her, cutting off the call seconds later. He let out an aggravated breath as he pulled out his communicator to message everyone. "Alright guys, assemble at the T-car in five minutes. Our alien's woken up."

* * *

Panic was the general feel running around in the labs when they arrived. Beast Boy could smell the pheromones being given off without even needing to morph. A side-effect of his powers, he had stronger senses than most humans, the main reason why he played pranks most of the time. Like how a dog would become more playful when everyone was happy, Beast Boy was the same – pheromones emitted through joy always made him livelier.

This place, however, was making him regret waking up today.

The Titans didn't have to wait long before Doctor Goodwinn appeared and ushered them to the alien's recovery room.

"So far, we don't know much about him," she admitted as she led them at a brisk pace. "His name is Azeal, and that's about it. We're working on trying to understand the scarring on his face – among his race, facial scars are often brandings."

Starfire frowned. "I do not understand. Why would companies wish to advertise with an alien's face?" Her naivety to human culture shone through, and Beast Boy found himself struggling to keep a straight face under the circumstances.

"Wrong branding," Raven grunted, an irk of irritation present in her voice. "You're thinking of brand _names_. The kind meant are those like marks, symbols that explain something ."

"Ah, I understand!" Starfire smiled sweetly, grasping onto another straw of human culture. "Like how the large, curved, yellow 'M' is symbolic for the 'McDonald's'."

Raven shrugged. "Close enough."

Doctor Goodwinn remained silent, merely swiping her access card to allow them into a holding room. Within, it was rather like a cell; there was a bed, toilet and sink, and nothing else. On the bed, Azeal stuck out like a sore thumb. His crimson hair contrasted madly against the white bedsheets, and for the first time, the Titans saw the scarring they'd heard about earlier. Beneath his right eye he had a large, purple tear-shaped scarring, ending just below his cheek bone. On his left, there were the white scar-linings of a symbol having been branded into his face; it looked like the base was a 'D', with a 'K' forming from the vertical base line.

"Dude..." Beast Boy whispered, unable to find anymore words.

"Maybe you can ask him yourself what the scars mean," Doctor Goodwinn said as she crossed the room. "I'll wake him, then you can talk to him yourselves. I'm going to lock the room, for safety precautions; I'm sure you can handle yourselves if he attacks." She stopped, glancing back at them for a moment. "When you wish to leave, knock on the two-way mirror there-" she nodded towards the large mirror behind them, "and I'll let you out."

She turned back to the patient and pulled a syringe from the inside of her lab coat, gently priming his arm before she injected it. After checking for signs of consciousness, she nodded and left the room, leaving the Titans with the rousing alien.

"Alright, guys, fan out, we don't want to scare him," Robin instructed, nodding as each Titan took a corner, while he stood just away from the bed, waiting for Azeal to wake. "Raven," Robin said as he glanced backwards.

"I know." She nodded, closing her eyes and concentrating. "One lie-detector test, coming up."

"I've got mine running and ready to go," Cyborg informed them as he lifted an arm, staring at the readings within. "If he's lying, we'll be sure to know."

"Good," Robin said as he stared at Azeal. "Now, we can see what he's been saying to get everyone so worked up."

* * *

Drug filled euphoria... it left everything in a blurry, spinning haze. Voices distorted manically, coming from each and every direction.

Azeal sat up slowly, pinching his eyes shut as he leant his head heavily in his hands. The room was still spinning slowly, and he could hear a voice trying to pierce his ears... though nothing was coming through other than indistinguishable sounds.

"...awake?"

Déjà vu hit Azeal, and he squinted open his eyes uncertainly, trying to focus on the spinning images before him. As they became one, he suddenly found himself staring at a boy with jet black hair, wearing a strange combination of red, yellow and green, and with a pair of soulless, hollow eyes that stared at his face. Within those eyes, he could see the reflection of his own; a deep blue with white lightning marks sparking throughout.

"You're finally awake then?" the hollow eyed person asked, offering a tentative smile. "I'm Robin," he said as he offered a hand, "I'm the leader of the Teen Titans; we're the ones that found you."

Azeal strained his eyes, staring around the room briefly. There was a small green boy with pointed ears – an elf maybe? – a large robotic man with hints of dark skin, a grey skinned girl donning deep blue and black garbs, and another girl, significantly taller than most, with orange skin and fiery red hair, shining emerald eyes, wearing purple clothes._ A Tamaranian?_ Azeal guessed; he's never actually seen one of them before. He finally glanced back to the one called Robin, and stared at the offered hand.

"Azeal," he grunted as he grabbed it, following Robin's lead as he shook. He glanced around for a moment, staring at them all. "So... where am I?" he asked as he pinched his eyes shut again. "And who are you guys?"

"You're in S.T.A.R. Labs, on planet Earth," Robin answered. "And like I said, we're the Teen Titans." As Azeal looked around, everyone else offered a small nod, while the orange one waved welcomingly. "So why _are_ you on Earth? Were you meant to land here?"

Azeal felt like letting out a snort. Same questions, different faces. "I came to planet Earth to deliver a warning. Sometime soon, I don't know when; your whole planet is going to perish."

Amazingly, none of them reacted in the way Azeal expected. All he got were stony faces, and a _smirk_ from Robin.

"End of the world huh? We've dealt with one of those before." The way he said it, Azeal found himself believing it totally. "Now, why don't you tell us who you're delivering this message for, and then you can go back and tell them we're not interested in threats."

Azeal shook his head, tentatively holding the side of it with a hand. "I'm not working for anyone. It's all from prophecies. It's what I tried explaining to everyone else before they decided to inject me with those drugs."

Robin glanced around for a moment, and after finding no chair, decided to sit on the bed. "Alright, I'll bite," he grunted. "Tell me about this prophecy."

"Finally; someone with sense!" Azeal whispered to himself. "My race all has powers relating to advancements of the mind; we can hear thoughts, draw emotions, even influence others. The more powerful of us can even move things with their minds, and the strongest – our Elder – has the ability to see the future." He let the words sit for a moment, and after seeing that he was being believed for now, he continued. "However, our first Elder made a series of predictions for the entire system. He predicted that every so often, a Demon Lord would visit a world, and lay waste to the planet."

_That_ got a reaction out of almost everyone. Muffled gasps and paling skins all told Azeal that they knew what he was talking about.

"But that's not the end of it," Azeal continued, speaking before anyone else could. "Each planet that survives the arrival of a Demon Lord will later be subjected to the arrival of a Holy One. I think you base it on a concept of good and evil?" He shook his head. "Anyway, the Holy One will come and purge the planet, seeking to destroy all traces of corruption that the Demon Lord left."

"So you're saying some big _angel_ is going to lay waste to our planet?!" the green one exclaimed, almost literally pulling his hair out at the thought. "B-but... angels are supposed to be _good_! There's no way they'd destroy an entire planet!"

"Call them what you will, they come to cleanse corruption," Azeal countered. "And there is no way of escaping such a thing. _All _will be destroyed."

"But... why?!" the green one gasped. "How?!"

"If it destroys corruption," the pale girl whispered, her voice sounding strained with conflicting emotions, "then _everything_ will be destroyed. Everything is corrupt in some way, be it through selfishness, hatred or cruelty."

"Exactly," Azeal nodded, happy that someone could understand him. "My planet... we knew about Earth having a Demon Lord coming. Our Elders decided to not interfere, because if we did, and Earth survived, the Demon Lords would know of our planet. Self preservation," he hissed, shaking his head at the thought. "Our leaders sent out a scout ship a week after the prophesized date of the Demon Lord's coming, and found that Earth was still intact. I'm sorry to say, but," he looked up, hesitation and apologies written all over his face, "you're all doomed. That which you worship will come to destroy you."

Silence hung in the air, the words sinking into everyone, leaving them all uncomfortable in the awkward silence.

"Well, no wonder why everyone was panicking so much," the robotic teen suddenly grunted, folding his arms over his chest. "Telling someone that the creatures in their religion will kill them won't settle well with anyone."

Robin finally stood, sharing a glance with his teammates. "I think we've heard enough for now." He took a step forwards, before glancing back at Azeal. "We'll be back soon, and we'll have more questions for you."

"Wait!" Azeal yelped as they turned to leave, jumping off the bed suddenly. "Can you... take me with you?" He looked pleadingly at them while sheepishly kicking at the floor. "I don't like it here... everyone sees me as some sort of experiment; what drugs affect him this way, what in that way... I don't wish to be treated like a lab rat. Surely you have somewhere to put me? You can ask me all the questions you like, all the time that way..."

"No." Even with the soulless mask, Azeal still flinched at the intensity of Robin's glare. "We're not taking in anyone for now, and you're safe here. I'll have a word with the doctors about how they're treating you, but you're staying here. Simply put; I just don't trust you enough to let you into our home."

He let those words chill the air as he knocked on the mirror and left with his team, leaving Azeal alone in the room, wondering just whether these people were actually worth saving.

* * *

Folding his arms, Robin stared through the two-way mirror, watching Azeal slump back onto the bed.

"What did you two realise?" he asked both Cyborg and Raven, his eyes not leaving the mirror.

"He was telling the truth," Raven responded, finding herself now watching him stare morosely at the ceiling. "Or at least, what he believes to be truth. I sensed no malcontent, he actually wants to help us."

"Same here," Cyborg answered. "Read-outs show normal brainwave and heartbeat functionality, nothing made either peak like he was lying." He shut down the computer on his arm and looked towards their leader. "Hate to say it Robin, but there might actually be some truth behind his words. For all we know, there very well _could_ be something holy coming to kill us all. And although it sounds farfetched, this kid's probably our best bet about knowing what we need to do."

Robin frowned, glaring more intently at the glass. "I don't buy it. He just so happens to make the trip to Earth, all out of the goodness of his heart? And the first chance he gets, he wants in on the Tower? He's got to have something planned."

"Or he could be merely a frightened stranger," Starfire countered. "I too, know how he feels; to be alone on a strange planet. Maybe he is telling the truth, maybe there is something coming. Maybe he really wanted to stay somewhere where he felt safe, and you have just shot down his hopes."

Beast Boy took a breath, fighting against the sheer cold feeling burning in his heart. "Face it Rob, not everyone's like Terra." The sheer cold silence that hit them afterwards was enough to freeze even the sun, but Beast Boy moved on, eager to prove his point. "The guy could be just trying to help, looking for a safe place to stay, just like Star said. We offered Terra a place to stay quickly, why shouldn't we do it with him?"

"Because of what Terra did," Robin sniped, turning to glare at them. "Maybe it would be wise to move him in with us; to keep a closer eye on him, but we need to learn from our mistakes. If he does move in, I want to be prepared this time, just in case. Anyone who thinks we'll just happily accept anyone in to be a Titan doesn't know us at all, and needs a reality check."

Harsh words that stung them all.

Robin let out a seething breath as he stormed down the halls, angry at them, angry at Terra... angry at himself for working himself like that. Meanwhile, Doctor Goodwinn let out a soft sigh as she looked at the remaining four Titans.

"Tell you what," she started, sounding unsure of her idea already. "You go back home, do whatever checks you need to do, come back and find out what you need from Azeal in the mean time. While you do that, I'll make sure he's looked after well, and I'll make sure he's got somewhere to stay, just in case he doesn't end up living with you."

Expressing their thanks, the Titans turned and left after their leader, leaving Azeal still in his room alone, playing over what he did wrong in his mind.

* * *

Yet again, Beast Boy was bored. Robin was busy looking over his finds from Azeal, while Starfire was playing with Silkie, and Cyborg was inventing some kind of new upgrade for his sonic cannon.

Raven meanwhile, had bluntly told him, that if he even _thought_ of disturbing her while she mediated, she would make him experience unparallel fear everytime he heard the word 'tofu'. Beast Boy laughed the threat off at first, until she somehow managed to encite in him a lust over teddy bears. They swore never to speak of what they saw when they found him again.

Lesson learnt; never mess with Raven.

He sighed, staring at the television screen. It was all well and good that he was getting better at the latest game, but there was no fun when he played by himself. He needed something new to focus his mind on. He would have gone to see Azeal, to find out more about his home, but Robin had said that now, they were going to leave him for a few days, to see if his story changed in the meantime.

It didn't alleviate Beast Boy's boredom.

Then again, who was Robin to decide who Beast Boy could speak to? He might have been their leader, but that didn't mean he was always right. A smirk appeared on Beast Boy's face as he walked over to the window and slid it open. A moment later, he was a hawk, soaring into town, aiming for some new conversation.

* * *

Doctor Goodwinn often dealt with things that were outside of the norm. A woman of science, she always found it interesting to apply plausible explanations towards the metahuman's powers. Magic and the like eluded her, but physical changes she could often get her mind round.

Thus, when a green hawk crashed into her window, she wasn't as surprised as one would have thought.

"That window's shut Beast Boy," she said as she glanced up, watching as the hawk fluttered into her office almost sheepishly before suddenly becoming the form of the green teenager.

"Heh, oops," he said sheepishly, hoping she wouldn't mention it. "Bird vision doesn't exactly do well with extremely clean windows."

The doctor raised an amused eyebrow. "I'll take that as a compliment to our window cleaner." She smiled, watching as he searched for an explanation as to his presence in her office. "So, I suppose you're here to interrogate Azeal?" she asked, pointing her pencil at him.

"No!" Beast Boy squeaked, holding his hands out defensively. "I'm just here, 'cause well... to talk..." he finished lamely, hanging his head in defeat.

"'Talk?'" Doctor Goodwinn echoed. "I suppose friendly conversation will likely reveal more than interrogation could. Do you want me to let you into his room?"

Beast Boy smiled, waving a hand dismissively. "Nah, it's okay doc. I can let myself in!"

"Really?" she arched another brow. "So you can bypass a system of metallic and binary identification codes to allow access into a room?"

The boy almost fell to the floor in surprise. "Uh, I meant sure doc! Lead the way!"

* * *

Azeal grunted in boredom as he stared at the ceiling, wondering just what he could do. There were limits to his imagination, after all. He also felt uncomfortable in the clothes the doctors had given him; grey jogging bottoms and a white top, he was used to wearing a full robe, nothing as confining as these.

When his door opened, he was thankful for the break in boredom, even if it was for more tests.

However, the only person that came in was the green boy from earlier, looking positively lost, and wondering just what he was doing in such a place.

"Uh, hey!" he said suddenly, offering a wide smile.

"Hi?" Azeal looked quizzically at him, wondering just what was going on.

"Oh, right!" the green boy said to himself. "Name's Beast Boy, never got the chance to say so earlier. Sorry about Robin though, unfortunately for us, he usually has that stick up his ass." His smile broadened as Azeal let out a laugh, glad someone appreciated his humour. "So, uh, what'cha doing here?"

Azeal deadpanned. "Being held until they're sure I'm not going to cause everyone untold pain and gloom. The question is more, what are _you_ doing here, don't you think?"

"Right." Beast Boy grinned sheepishly. "Well, uh... to tell the truth, I don't really know," he admitted, dropping his arms uselessly by his sides. "You see, I was bored when I was at home, and well, everyone else was busy, and Raven had threatened to make me become afraid of tofu..."

Azeal let out another laugh. "I take it Raven's a telepath then?"

Beast Boy shook his head. "Nah, but she's got mad skills with empathy," he clarified, sharing a grin.

Finding himself smiling, Azeal decided to ask, "So, have you all got powers then?" He wasn't sure about the details, but apparently, powers on Earth were nowhere as common as that of his home planet

"Most of us, yeah," he answered. "Of course, I'm the most awesome of them all!" he proclaimed, cracking his knuckles above his head. "Watch... this!" he exclaimed, suddenly ballooning into a walrus, then a lion, a butterfly, and finally a seal before becoming human again.

"There's a reason why I'm called Beast Boy!" he declared victoriously.

Azeal stared at him for a moment. "So is it just those animals you can become?"

"Nope!" Beast Boy shook his head. "Any animal I can think of!"

"Cool." Azeal found himself smiling, thinking of the possibilities. "Only Earth animals, or others too?"

Beast Boy shrugged. "I've managed a creature from Tamaran before, but that was just an experiment. I'm not sure about other planet's animals; I'll have to try it sometime," he decided, rubbing his chin in thought. "So dude, what can you do? I've come here to get rid of boredom, so it better be something awesome!"

Azeal shrugged as he clenched a fist, forming a ball of fire around it. He opened the fist, causing the fire to coalesce in a large ball in his palm. "Fire and wind magic," he explained, gesturing with his other hand to create a soft breeze, causing the fire to flutter away in the wind. "I think I can do more... I'm not sure. I never exactly got much chance to practice with them."

"How comes?" the changeling asked as he sat cross legged on the floor, looking like a student wishing to learn.

Azeal sighed, staring at the mirror as he felt over his white scar. "My people... aren't exactly appreciative of powers that aren't ideal. Before, we used to all have different powers, but eventually, telepathy and telekinesis suddenly emerged in our population. It was suddenly decided that those were peak power to have; to have such powers, we must be smart to use them, and thus, our race must be advancing. If anyone is found not to have such powers, then they're killed."

Tense silence filled the air.

"So... how comes you're still alive?" Beast Boy asked.

Azeal let out another sigh. "I don't really know. I can take in emotions; I use them to fuel my powers. From that... I can read people a bit more than most. I suppose I developed that well enough to pass for a bottom-tier student." He let the words hang before he turned to face Beast Boy, pointing at the white symbol etched on his face. "It's what this mark stands for. They eventually found out I was a devále – someone who doesn't have the 'ideal' powers. I managed to escape death – but I was branded instead. I'm never allowed back onto X'ienaqs again; if they see my mark, they're allowed to kill me on sight."

"Dude..." Beast Boy whispered after a brief quiet. "That's... horrible!"

"By Earth standards," Azeal shrugged. "On my planet, it's normal."

He looked away again, leaving Beast Boy to think about it all. "So, what about the other scar?" he eventually asked, indicating on his own face.

"This..." Azeal whispered, tracing the scar himself. He looked away, scrunching his eyes shut. "It's a mark of shame. I was shamed from birth – it's a warning that I have an unideal past..." he trailed slightly, looking away awkwardly. A moment later he looked back, fingering the mark of shame subconsciously. "So uh, what's Earth really like?" he asked curiously, wondering of the world outside the walls. "I've only ever read about it in books... and well..." he looked around the room pointedly. "I've not really seen much outside these four walls, to be honest."

Beast Boy looked torn between two decisions. He wanted to suddenly exclaim that they should bust out of the joint, travel and look around the city, but Robin would be _pissed_. Added to that, he himself wasn't sure how much he trusted Azeal. He fumbled with his communicator for something to do, staring blankly at it until he caught the time.

"Damn!" he hissed, snapping the device shut and leaping to his feet. "I've gotta go!" he declared suddenly, aiming towards the door.

"Oh... right..." Azeal murmured dejectedly, gaze dropping to his feet. "Uh, thanks for coming... I guess..."

"Hey!" Beast Boy suddenly spun around, offering a trademark grin. "I'm not running out on you 'cause of what you said! I just _really_ need to be somewhere!" He glanced around, frowning at the lack of sunlight coming into the room. "Tell ya what, I'll come back when I can, and I'll bring you some stuff to help you learn more about Earth, alright?"

Azeal's face brightened considerably in an instant. "I'd like that."

"Awesome!" the changeling declared, moments before he began jogging on the spot. "Right, well, I've gotta get going! It was cool chatting to you dude!"

In the whole time the Titan was there, neither had noticed the tiny camera hidden in a screw holding the mirror on the wall, the tiny camera with the familiar symbol etched onto its side.

* * *

Even after managing to race across the city in the form of a hawk, Beast Boy had still managed to turn up late to training practice. As punishment, he ended up having to wash all the dishes for that night – without powers. Yet again, Beast Boy had found himself secretly awed as to how Robin managed to beat their standards without any powers of his own.

Powers always granted them something out of the ordinary, Beast Boy reflected. He'd always felt left out when everyone started speaking in complex chemistry or algebra, but very rarely did he realise how his own intelligence could be called into play. He had the knowledge of the entire animal kingdom at his disposal; the memory of an elephant, the strength of a bear, the speed of a cheetah...

"I wouldn't try anything if I were you."

Raven's simple advice started the teen so much he actually let out a quick scream, managing to leap into the air and land as a hiding turtle in one fluid motion.

The reaction only caused a raised eyebrow from Raven.

"You were projecting again," she explained as she calmly reached into the fridge and pulled out an apple. "Anyone with empathy can hear the waves of confusion coming off you. And you're only _that _confused when you're plotting something."

Beast Boy leapt to his feet as he became human, indignation sweeping through him. "Yeah, well... no one asked you to listen!"

Raven regarded him coolly as she bit into the fruit. "Hard not to," she responded. "Your emotions are about as quiet as Kitten when she sees pictures of Robin and Star together."

Beast Boy winced at the memory. When the magazines had published the newest Titan relationship, Kitten had somehow managed to get everyone within a three-block radius hear her subsequent Starfire-bashing.

"It was just helpful advice," Raven said as she threw the apple core into the trash. "Feel free to take it or not. If this Azeal turns out to be our enemy, we don't want him reading you too easily. He might not be just an empath. He might be a telepath too."

Beast Boy bit his lip as he felt a retort try to escape. He had to be careful with his comebacks, lest Raven would discover he'd been to visit the alien earlier. "But you said his story was true!"

"I also said that he could just believe it," she responded over her shoulder. "Because someone believes in it doesn't make it real. I could ask a child if the tooth fairy was real, and it would seem like they were telling the truth if they said they existed."

"Yeah... but..." Beast Boy struggled for words, grasping at invisible strings.

Raven let out a sigh as she turned around. "Look, Gar," she started, stopping him short. "I know that you look for the best in everyone. I know that you want Azeal to do exactly as he says; to come here to help us from whatever. I also know that you visited him earlier to get your own opinion," she uttered in a darker tone, causing him to gulp nervously. "But that doesn't mean you should give him your complete trust."

"It doesn't mean I shouldn't trust him at all!" Beast Boy countered, bunching his hands into fists. "I get that Robin has to run all his tests and crap to be safe. I get that Cy can run extra security programs to be safe. Hell, I even get that you ward the place with magic and guard your emotions!

"But..." he trailed off slightly, relaxing his fists slightly. "You need to understand Rae, I can't do any of that. There isn't an animal I can become that can detect a liar, or set up a security fail safe in case of betrayal. All I can do is give someone my trust, and hope that they won't take it and shatter it into a thousand pieces."

Raven felt all argument die in her throat as she whispered a soft "Gar..." Turning her face to the floor, she found words escaping her mouth. "He can use magic. You shouldn't trust _anyone_ that can use magic."

"But," Beast Boy frowned. "_You_ can use magic."

A soft laugh escaped Raven's lips. "Exactly. Look at what I've done. I'm reason enough to tell you to distrust all mages."

"But Rae," he objected, placing his hands gently on her shoulders. "_I_ trust you. With my life. If you're the example I have to judge all magic users by, then I guess I can happily trust them all."

Raven looked up, a smile gracing her face. A grin was set over Beast Boy's, his eyes shining with sincerity.

"Beast Boy, ultimate hunk of trust!" he proclaimed, pointing a thumb towards himself triumphantly.

Raven could only shake her head. "Another moment we've had that you've killed, Beast Boy." She rolled her eyes, turning to leave for her room. After a few steps, she stopped, staring back at him with a frown. "Just be careful, okay?"

Her footsteps dissolved into silence as Beast Boy stared at her long-gone shadow.

He stared a moment longer, mind whirring with their conversation. Either Azeal was lying, and trying to destroy them, or he was telling the truth, and the Earth would soon be reduced to ashes.

Talk about lose-lose situations.

_**To be continued...**_


	5. Introductions: Overstayed Welcome

_**Teen Titans**_

**_Corruption's End_**

**Introductions; Overstayed Welcome

* * *

**_They stared, squinting at the shape forming_

_One by one, looks of surprise formed on their faces_

_The laws of nature were warped before their very eyes_

_They dropped into defensive stances, glaring at her_

_They'd buried her corpse, and now she stood before them, alive and well._

* * *

"How old are you?"

"What is our purpose in coming to this planet?"

"Do you have an ulterior motive?"

"How much do you know of Earth?"

"What medicinal practices do your people use?"

"Are there any inherent allergies or diseases your people are weak to?"

"Are-" "How-" "Who-" "What-" "When-" "Why-"

Azeal grunted as he pressed his palms to his head, trying to stem the sheer volume of noise reverberating round his skull. Every day since he'd arrived, all he had were questions, questions and yet more questions. The novelty was beginning to wear thin. Each questioned now blurred into a grey mass within his skull, pounding incoherently against each other.

He watched solemnly as the large straight lines on the clock face turned around the circular frame. All this time here and they'd asked him questions constantly, not ever giving him the chance to ask any of his own. He didn't even know how to tell time with Earth methodologies!

Sorrow swept slowly through him, steadily increasing in vigour. Sorrow turned to annoyance, annoyance became hatred, and hatred fuelled anger.

Blind rage filled his vision until suddenly something _exploded_ in his room. He blinked through surprise, a shocked expression set on his face as he stared at the bed – his bed – which was now ablaze in brilliant yellow flame.

Alarms flared all around him, and the emergency sprinklers whirred into life, filling the room with water. All the while, he stared numbly at his hands. _Did... did I do that?_ He found himself wondering. Never given the chance to actually practice his powers, Azeal began wondering what exactly could happen in a worst-case scenario. What if he'd hit a gas tank? What if he was in the middle of a civilian heavy area?

Maybe it was for the best if he stayed in here.

Even if they didn't believe he posed no threat with his warning, the lack of control over his powers might say otherwise. Fire was nature's untamed trump card; pure destruction in the form of heat and light. And it seemed he had fire at his beck and call.

And slowly, as a team ran in with fire extinguishers, a plan began to form in his mind...

* * *

The single slab of grey concrete summed up his entire reason for his original despise of his new appearance. After that fateful day, nothing had ever been the same again. Even though it brought back memories of such a horrific day, the sight of it still brought back a small smile to Cyborg's face.

"_Elinore Stone_."

"Hey mom," said Cyborg as he gently set down a bouquet of yellow tulips before the gravestone – after all, they were her favourite. "Sorry I haven't been here in a while." He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, even now able to remember her voice when she scolded him.

"There's been a lot going on lately," he continued, sitting before the decorated memorial. "A big fight between us and the Brotherhood of Evil. They tried destroying all of us, along with every other honorary Titan. It was a tough fight, but we won eventually," he said with a small smile, staring with a distant gaze at the skyline. "But, I guess I'm here for something else. You always were the religious one, after all." He smiled again at the gravestone, wondering what next to say. While it was true that she might not have been able to answer him, or even give him any sort of comfort, sometimes... sometimes it was nice just to be able to get everything off your chest.

"There's this alien we've just found... but I'm not sure about him yet," he admitted with a soft scowl. "He's an Emparite – I've never heard of them before. Then again, I'd never heard of Tamaranians before I met Star." A small laugh escaped his lips, and once again he found himself rubbing his domed head. "He's brought some sort of warning; says that our planet's doomed – you know; that ol' story.

"But," he stopped suddenly, features twisting into a grimace, "he says it's going to come in the form of something we all worship; an angel. Sounds impossible, I know, right? But... I mean, it makes some sense, you know? The easiest way to destroy something is to turn up looking like a holy creature. Then again, most scientists would probably just try to dissect one," he added darkly. "But what do you think? Is it really possible an angel's going to kill us all? Or is it just some hoo-hah from some jacked-up alien that's looking for a few kicks?"

Silence followed his question, his words dying away with the wind. Cyborg closed his eyes solemnly, bowing his head as he felt a soft breeze kiss his forehead. He looked up as he opened them again in time to watch a leaf float along in the wind and land gently on a nearby gravestone. Instantly zooming in on the object with his artificial eye, he felt the data scan and process into his memory core.

'_John Doe. _

_A true rocker to the end, he probably parties on with the Devil himself as his drummer.'_

Blinking a few times, Cyborg stared at the grave. _They actually allow stuff like that on gravestones?_ He thought incredulously, shaking his head in amused disbelief. The devil as a drummer...

_The devil._

Cyborg's eyes widened as his memories hit him. The devil – Lucifer was once an angel who was cast down for aiming to attain power greater than any other, and now tortured the souls of humans as he plotted to kill them all in a form of perfect revenge.

It was a favourite story of his mother's to tell him. The lesson was that not even the angels themselves are above God's rule. If one angel wanted to torture humanity, who was to say that another wouldn't? Alongside that, Cyborg recalled the story of Noah's Ark. The world was flooded to cleanse evil; and only a handful of people and animals were chosen to live. What about all the others that weren't chosen, and instead drowned?

It had happened once before – who was to say it couldn't happen again?

Grunting in acknowledgment, Cyborg stood, bowing his head softly. "Thanks for that ma; you've helped me understand a few things." He smiled again, turning to leave. "I promise I'll come visit more often when I can."

As he left, his large shadow covering her grave, he failed to notice the small breeze flutter around the flowers in almost bittersweet pride.

* * *

He stared at the ceiling, attempting to find a flaw within it's build. Luckily, seeing as he'd spent most of the weeks in the room staring blankly at the ceiling, people merely thought he was in another depressed stupor.

Now, it was anything but that.

It seemed as if the finest engineers had been employed to craft such a cell. As far as Azeal could see, it seemed to be reinforced with _something_, most likely a material that resisted most forms of damage to prevent someone breaking out.

He glanced at the mirror, considering smashing it and escaping that way. Although, he remembered that the same wall was also shared with a busy corridor, and the last thing he wanted to do was injure people in his escape.

He frowned, staring desolately at the door. It seemed this room was fully escape-proof. Everywhere he looked, he only found another way that he was trapped. Even the door itself would only open from the outside, and only then when an electronic lock was triggered on the other side of the wall.

His eyes lit up in idea. The electrics! Surely, if he managed to overheat them, a fuse would blow, and the lock would disengage. It was his only hope now, other than fighting his way out.

He moved towards the door, placing his hand against the wall. All he had to do was generate enough heat for the fuse to blow... the only problem was that he could only do it through fire. As he'd felt before, the sprinklers activated in case of fire, and alarms flared. It wasn't exactly a subtle escape.

His eyes darted around the room, mind whirring for an idea. He set his eyes on the toilet, and then towards the bed sheets covering his bed. An idea sparked within his mind, and quickly he set about performing his task. He pulled the sheet from the bed and wrapped it round his shoulders, attempting to make himself look cold. Standing before the toilet, he pried the cistern open, glancing at the water floating within. After quickly soaking some of the sheet in the water, he wrapped the wet cloth around his hand, hoping his plan would work.

He focused, willing something to happen. The familiar heat of fire dancing at his fingertips greeted him, albeit colder than usual. He stood for a moment, making sure the fire remained before a triumphant smile crossed his face.

Freedom was drawing closer.

* * *

Freedom was taking a while to achieve.

So far, Azeal had managed to burn his way through part of the wall, though he constantly had to re-soak the cloth to ensure it didn't catch fire. He scowled, annoyed that this was taking so long. The annoyance built up before something burnt his hand, and with a hiss Azeal withdrew his hand, shaking it violently. He blinked for a moment as the lights flickered before a small plume of smoke emerged from the wall. The lights flickered once more before a hiss emerged from the door as it slowly opened, revealing the outside corridor to him.

The alien smirked. Azeal one, modern Earth technology: zero.

Stepping cautiously into the corridor, his eyes scanned both directions as he rubbed the teardrop etched in his face. He needed to escape... but his brandings made him stand out in a crowd. He needed some sort of cover.

He skulked down the hall, pausing at each new branch in the corridor. Slowly he crept through, heart pounding a mile a minute as he made his way along the uniform surroundings. All was well... until he heard whistling.

His heart stopped. All around he glanced, finding no hiding spots. Panic flared through him, as did paranoia. He reached for the nearest door, muttering a curse as it remained shut. Another he tried, reaching the same result. Another, and another before he fell into the final one, landing unceremoniously in a dark cupboard.

He strained his eyes, searching all around him, attempting to figure out where he was. Blindly feeling his way around, he managed to find some sort of button against the wall, and acting on impulse, he pressed it.

A hiss escaped his lips as light blared throughout the room, revealing its content to him. Monotony struck him; all around were whitewashed walls and slim metallic cupboards. He blinked once before approaching one, prodding it in cautious interest. When it didn't attack, he pressed the small button on it's side... only for nothing to happen. He cursed, attacking the metal with an elbow, crumpling it instantly. Tossing the door aside, he glanced inside to see a neat pile of clothes sat within. His heart lit up in joy, only to drop as he realised something strange about the clothes.

They were all women's.

He cursed his luck. Somehow, he'd ended up in the room where all the _women _stored their clothes. He considered his options; he could either try to find the room with men's clothes, or use what he had.

He glanced around, wincing as static suddenly flared through the speakers in the room.

'_Attention employees. Cell occupant oh-seven-c-j-six-nine has escaped. All employees be on the lookout for a teenage boy with crimson hair and facial scars. Assume he is armed and contact security if seen.'_

"X'hied!" he cursed. The second option had become his only one. With a guttural moan he searched the room, squeezing his feet into the first pair of shoes he found. He pulled on a bright yellow hooded sweatshirt emblazoned with 'I luv Jump!' and conducted a final sweep of the room. He glanced into the locker again, staring blankly at the metal tin containing a brush and some powder. He stared at it for a moment before experimentally putting a dot on his cheek, coating it in an unhealthy orange glow.

Azeal shrugged. He was already wearing bright yellow, becoming orange wouldn't hurt much more. He quickly covered his face in the substance, barely recognising himself when he was finished. He put the hood up and stared at himself for a moment before nearly shrieking as the locker room door suddenly flew open.

"Sorry miss," the security guard apologised hastily as he spotted Azeal. "But have you seen a boy with crimson hair at all?"

Words stuck in his throat, Azeal could only manage to shake his head.

"Alright," said the guard, tipping his hat. "Sorry for the intrusion." He turned and left quickly, muttering something about 'bad tan' as he left.

Counting his blessings, Azeal grinned before moving to leave the room. And leaving the labs was as easy as walking through the front door.

* * *

Everything was so much different.

So many smells, so many sights, so many sounds assaulted his senses that Azeal found himself wandering the streets in amazement. Truly, books could not describe a place as well as seeing it oneself could.

He stopped by a shop, watching as the multiple mirrors dangling from the inside shone and reflected his face. He winced, seeing his brand so many times at once. After leaving the labs he had wiped off the orange goo, and now happily wandered the streets, fresh faced and eager to learn.

He stopped in wonder, watching the world go by, and the people passing each other without so much as a hello, or even a smile. His nose took in the brilliant smells of fresh bread, cakes and other foods, the mix of various different aftershaves and deodorants, even the various smells of sweat emanating off some people.

It was... so _free_.

No one here forced him into 'special' areas designed for shamed ones such as he, no one insulted him because of the shame mark etched into his face. Instead here some would stare, others would point, but all would continue past him, leaving him to himself.

It was a refreshing change.

He stopped before a small stand, watching as the rotund, bald man serving reached into the metallic contents and placed a small red cylinder of some substance on a bread bun and exchanged it for a few green pieces of paper. Curious, Azeal wandered closer, stopping before the small cart. A new smell approached him, this time a mixture of fried onions, strange red, yellow and brown liquids and that of the strange red tubes.

"Y'alright there kid?" the man serving asked him, drawing Azeal's wondering face. The man's mouth dropped open slightly before curving into a soft smile, finishing in an approving nod. "Them's some nice tatt's you get there kid. Where'd you get them?"

"Tatts?" Azeal blinked wonderingly. "Oh, right, you mean as in 'tattoos', right? The various forms of brandings humans take upon themselves to adhere to a culture, as well as to categorise themselves in or out of a specific following?"

The man stared in slight bewilderment. "Uh, yeah, what you said."

"These are not tattoos," Azeal shook his head. "These are similar, as in they a form of brandings, but I believe ours are in more of a tribal nature, rather than those of design as seen modernly."

The man blinked, leaning heavily on his stand. "Right, so they're not tatt's." He sniffed, wiping a hairy arm under his nose before sniffing again. "So do you want a hotdog or not?"

Azeal found himself lost again. "Hotdog?" He looked wonderingly at the man, then at the substance he placed inside a bread bun. His nose scrunched in distaste as he looked at the man. "Logically, it does not make sense to store food substances in such an environment. Exposing them to a small, closed area in high heat adds to the chance of bacteria breeding within the food, as does your hygiene of wiping biological fluids on your arm." Several people listening in turned green suddenly, giving the man shocked and accusatory glares.

"Alongside this," Azeal continued, "Given that you sell them freely in the street such as this, it is not unpredictable that various scavengers will attempt to get into the cart whilst you may have your attention distracted. Your foodstuffs could contain various substances such as salmonella, e-coli-" he stopped as one man suddenly threw his hotdog in the bin, turning a violent shade of green. All the while, the salesman was becoming a darker shade of red.

"Look kid," he grunted, branding a pair of forceps threateningly. "I don't know what you're deal is, but if you're just here to put my customers off, do me a favour and scram, before I shove one of these ketchup bottles were the sun don't shine. Got it?"

Azeal scratched his cheek in wonder. "I don't understand. I'm merely pointing out a few facts that will help you achieve a better profit through improvements-"

"_Beat it!"_ the man snarled, his temper boiling over completely. The alien shrugged and walked away, wondering why the man didn't appreciate his help. He was making multiple logical mistakes, surely the most effective way would be to combat them, not merely overlook them?

Humans were confusing.

He stopped further down the street, glancing round at the many decorated shops that lined the roads. He frowned, pressing a hand to his chin. Now without the lab's hospitality, he would need somewhere to stay. He could try to procure a ship somehow... but his homeworld didn't want him anymore.

He shrugged. Such things could be dwelt on later. For now, he was more than content to see all the sights the city had to offer him. He took in another deep breath, only this time he stopped and began coughing as a _horrible_ smell hit the back of his throat.

Grimacing and placing an arm over his nose, he scanned the street to identify the source of the smell, finding it in a trail of purple ooze slowly crawling out from a manhole cover.

He frowned. Logically, that shouldn't have happened. Gravity was meant to pull substances down, not along. However, when the purple ooze began to coalesce, Azeal quickly got the impression that this was not a normal occurrence.

The ooze morphed into a terrible shape; a liquid purple beast with multiple eyes of pus and a mouth lined with razor-sharp fangs. Layers of repulsive filth rippled over the creature, creating a horrible fetor that made everyone recoil in horror. The beast roared while people stopped and stared. Another roar echoed, and Azeal quickly got the impression this was far from normal.

"Where are the Teen Titans?!" someone in the fleeing crowd screamed.

Azeal stopped, staring after them. 'Teen Titans'? Those five teenagers he'd seen the other day? Were they really this world's form of a protection system? He tried to think more on the subject, but was blindsided as something like a tonne of bricks, and he found himself sliding backwards across the asphalt.

"Ow..." he grunted, pulling himself from the floor and rubbing his head. He retched as the foul smelling liquid adhered to his clothes and glared at the offending party. The creature stood there smugly, almost cackling to itself before advancing slowly, every step covering the remaining road in horrible sludge.

Scowling, Azeal found his feet, standing opposed to the filthy creature. "After me then?" he whispered, feeling anger burn through his veins. Red hot flames engulfed his hand in a brilliant fireball which hit the creature in the face brilliantly.

Coughing wildly, Azeal hissed at the foul smell of burning garbage being given off. He threw another ball of fire at the monster, only to stop and stare as it did nothing more than give off another horrible smell.

"Oh... x'hied," he cursed. He fell backwards ungracefully as the monster lashed out at him, barely missing his feet. He scrambled back, forcing himself up against a wall as the monster continued to advance. Anger turned to fear, and Azeal found himself watching as the creature roared near his face. The wind itself began to dance around his hands, and with a defiant roar he threw his hands forwards, beckoning gales to hammer into the creature, splattering the road and the buildings with viscous purple sludge.

Standing shakily, he stared at the remains of the monster. "Is it... is it still alive?" he found himself whispering, staring solemnly at the remains. All guilt, however, vanished without a trace as the ooze began reforming, once again becoming the horrible monstrosity.

"One day exploring; and I already meet this." Azeal jumped away a punch made from ooze, his mind straining to summon enough force to push the beast away. "It's a wonder humans have lived so long," he grunted, falling in a clumsy roll and forcing another gale to assault the monster.

It roared again, this time remaining whole as it fell over, skidding down the street. It stopped heavily before a large dump truck, whereupon its puss eyes lit up in surprise. The monster stood, and with a triumphant roar stretched its mouth over the end of the truck, happily ingesting all of the filth within.

Azeal winced, watching the creature feed with shocked horror. "Surely that's not nourishing..." he whispered, unable to fight the sickly feeling building up in his stomach. The beast stopped and roared again, though this time he _smelt_ rather than heard it. The foul stench warped everything around, withering flowers and bringing tears to Azeal's eyes.

He blinked past the blur, silently wondering where everyone was. As he stumbled in a teary blur, the monster roared again, swiping at the alien with both arms, crushing him with a resonating thud. As quickly as it happened, however, the monster withdrew its arms, hissing in pain.

Meanwhile Azeal stood, battered and bruised, wondering just what was happening. He fell to a knee weakly, staring at the monster in confusion, waiting for its final move.

Only, it never came.

Instead, a blast of compact sound whirred past his ear, piercing a hole through the screeching creature and blowing up a car behind it. Blinking in disbelief, Azeal looked up, finding the hulking mass of a robotic teen standing above him.

He distantly heard someone shout something before pain overwhelmed him, and everything faded into black.

* * *

Cyborg stared at the rhythmic pulse of the heart-rate monitor, listening to the various sounds around him that told him the condition of Azeal, who was currently occupying a bed within the Tower's med bay.

Robin was the first to break the silence. "Plasmus went straight for him, ignoring everyone else there was in the street. Alongside Cinderblock waiting for him, it looks like someone's out to get him."

"But who?" Starfire asked, her face full of inquisition. "How would someone know that he had plotted a course for Earth, and known the exact location at which he would land?" Her logic rendered Robin's arguments futile, and he was forced to listen to her own ideas. "It would have to be someone with much power able to find the frozen villains and perform the un-freezing on them. And then to contract them to follow after someone."

"Starfire has a point," Raven whispered, turning to face Robin. "We let him escape from the labs, just like you asked, followed him down the road, only to find out that Plasmus was sent to find him." She looked out the window, remembering Plasmus' continual attempts to reach the alien even while he fought the Titans. The main thought escalating through her head now was wonder as to what Plasmus could actually be bribed with.

"I could sense his emotions," she continued, looking back now to their leader. "He was full of wonder and inquisition, and only anger and fear when he fought Plasmus. Nothing else."

Robin sighed, wearily rubbing his eyes through the mask. "I know all this. I've spoken to Beast Boy too, and found out what he discovered on his impromptu visit to the labs the other day." Four sets of eyes fell heavily on the changeling, who waved nervously and backed into a corner. "The brand on his face is near enough a target," the Boy Wonder continued, pulling up a visual screen on the computer before him. Holograms emerged of Azeal's scarring, and at a press of a button, the image zoomed onto the brand. "Like Dr. Goodwinn pointed out to us; people on his planet are killed if they do not possess telepathic or telekinetic powers." He pulled up another visual, this time of Azeal fighting Plasmus. Fire erupted from Azeal's hands, and Robin froze the image there. "I think it's safe to say he doesn't possess such powers.

"Of course," he continued, frown deepening. "It _could_ be a coverup. I don't believe his story about why he's here – there's absolutely no evidence to further his claims. However-" his face darkened, "-_someone_ believes it, or considers him a threat. Every frozen villain was placed in different locations across the globe. That fact alone means his presence is dangerous to every civilian there is."

"So... what're we gonna do with him?" asked Beast Boy.

"The only thing we can do," Robin replied. "We're going to have to keep him here, under our observation, and our protection." Four different reactions met him. Beast Boy smirked, Starfire openly smiled, Cyborg lifted an eyebrow and a dark scowl crept over Raven's face.

"I believe him."

The three words came in such deadpan that it startled the other four, causing them all to stare at a very serious looking Cyborg. His arms were folded across his chest and he looked stern, as if he'd been considering the notion since he first heard it.

"A year ago, if you'd told me that a demon had fathered a daughter who was going to become a portal to let him take over the Earth, I'd have outright laughed at you and sent ya packing to the nearest nut house." He smiled softly at Raven, who until then had looked extremely self-conscious. "Now though, I'm beginning to understand. We've seen people use magic, have a friend that can suddenly gain mass from _anywhere_ to become any animal he wants-" Beast Boy grinned proudly, about to speak until Raven glared at him. "-and yours truly, who's more machine then human.

"What I'm saying is," Cyborg stared at the unconscious alien, his human eye sparkling with emotion. "It's believable. Look at the bible; it's happened before. Lucifer was banished from heaven to hell, and now wants revenge. God himself flooded the Earth for forty days and forty nights, all to cleanse the word of evil. I don't know if what the kid says will come true, hell, I don't know how _anyone_ could have made such a prediction... but I'm saying that I believe what he says is true. And if it comes true, I sure as hell want him on our side, rather than selling us out to something all-powerful."

"Remember that belief and trust are two different things," Raven coldly advised. "His story is believable, yes, but is he trustworthy? I don't think so." She scowled again, turning to leave before offering them her final, parting words. "Never trust anyone that can use magic. It corrupts the user too easily, and the lines between normal and dark magic are always a blur. There's a reason why I don't like using it."

Robin stood silently, watching as the woman left. "We'll wait until he wakes, and then talk fully to him. We'll try to understand everything, and then we'll make our judgement."

Starfire smiled, reaching out to place her hand on Robin's shoulder. "I am thankful that you are giving him a chance. It is not a nice feeling to find yourself alone on a strange planet. Even if we only look after him for a few days, the thought of having friends on a new planet is always a most welcoming idea."

"Alright y'all," Cyborg grinned, placing his hands on either side of everyone. "Now that we're decided, how about you scram from here? I've got a few more tests to run and a few more scans to complete. So either go annoy Raven, or whatever it is you do," he said to Beast Boy, causing the teen to grin sheepishly while attempting to look innocent. "And you two-" he looked at Starfire and Robin now. "Well, I think the less we know, the better, right?" A sly grin appeared over his face, even as Robin's cheeks became bright red, and Starfire blinked as naively as ever.

Chuckling to himself, Cyborg turned around, once again running a few more tests on their unconscious guest. He truly meant his words, though wondered whether or not the warning was true.

If he'd known, or if any of them had known the actual answer, their blood would have felt like ice, and fear would have replaced every other emotion in their systems. They would come to realise that ignorance truly was bliss.

_**To be continued...**_


	6. Decisions

_**Teen Titans**_

**_Corruption's End_**

**Decisions**

* * *

_Everything was becoming true_

_Unholy nightmares made real by twisted hands_

_Fires burnt, screams and sirens filled the air_

_Saline grief filled her eyes_

_Her friends were dead, just as she dreamt so many years before_

* * *

Every morning, Robin made the same decision. It was one he had made day-in, day-out for nearly a decade now, and the choice still wasn't any easier.

To put on the mask, and forget about the person underneath it.

Attached with spirit gel and charged with an electrical current, the mask would only come off if Robin removed it with his glove after hitting the electrical switch within. Special light-weight lenses covered his eyes, designed in like to a two way mirror; he could see out of it, but none could see in. Their light weight allowed the lenses to change shape with his facial expressions, maintaining a constant wide and precise field of vision. Bright-light and infra-red technologies in the lenses made it possible for him to see perfectly in the dark, and also detect heat signatures within a building.

It was a habit of a lifetime. A habit drilled into him at an early age, and one that even now, he found himself unable to break. He was always told it was a decision, a choice, only every day the choice seemed more like a necessity than a decision. He had only one true choice he could make, and every day he put it off again.

His name or his eyes.

Unlike everyone else in the Titans, Robin had a life secret from the public. If he ever wanted to, he could remove the mask and slip away into the crowds, blending in seamlessly. But if someone ever got a hold of his actual identity, they could hold his very heart in their hands. And that was why he put off that choice.

He trusted his friends with his life, but he wasn't sure if anyone was above torturing his friends to gain his name.

His eyes though, were another key to his identity. Biometric scans didn't work on his eyes due to his mask, but he found ways around that. As his mentor had once explained; the eyes were the key to a face. The shape and structure made up the most of it, but a person could only ever truly be recognised by their eyes. And so, if someone, somewhere, ever saw the eyes of the person underneath, it was another threat to his identity.

Every day, a decision had to be made. Every day, it seemed the decision had been made for him.

Deep down, he envied the people that made decisions themselves. In his own team, he could see it every day. Starfire's choice to remain on Earth, Beast Boy's not to return to the Doom Patrol. Raven's to fight against her destiny, and Cyborg's to embrace what would have been a nightmare to most people. Even in Azeal's choice to come to Earth in an attempt to help them.

And his decisions had been laid out before him so many times; ever since he'd been adopted by Batman. It wasn't his choice to become Robin, and now he found himself unable to do anything but follow in that pre-made choice.

Today was no different. With the weight of responsibility that came with leading a team of heroic teenagers bearing down on his shoulders, he let out a deep breath as he attached the mask over his face. The mask made him Robin; leader of the Teen Titans, sidekick to Gotham's finest. Today Robin was needed to find out what was truly happening with the alien known as Azeal, and so he would become Robin once more. Maybe someday, when Robin was not needed he could lose the mask, and become normal for a day.

But living in Jump, how likely would that ever be to happen?

* * *

The feeling of waking up pumped full of healing drugs and sedatives was fast becoming normal to Azeal. His eyelids felt heavy as he attempted to open them, and it seemed that there was someone's voice hitting his ears from a far-away place.

The voice became clearer as his eyesight returned, and he was met with the hulking mass of the large, half-machine man that he was sure he'd met somewhere before. If he was surprised, he didn't show it, instead he let out half a groan as he attempted to sit up, wincing at the feel of a large needle stuck in the crook of his elbow.

"Easy man," said the figure above him, his large metallic passing over his arm with a gentle touch surprising from his size. "Don't panic or nothing, I'm just gonna pull this needle out your arm. If you're awake, I don't think you're gonna need a drip anymore."

He was attempting to make humour of the situation, and Azeal found himself slowly beginning to grasp it. He blinked heavily, scrunched his eyes shut and pressed them with his free hand until gold and green spots appeared in his vision. He felt the pinch of the needle disappear, and found his sight focused on the small white ball of fluff placed over the bleeding spot.

"Glad to finally get to talk to ya," the man was saying, working his way around the room and reading various machines. "When we saw you in that room in the labs, I was just there to look like a big, intimidating statue. Thought I'd make it clear that I'm a nice guy underneath." He flashed a toothy grin and thrust a hand forward, leaving it hanging in the air. "Nice to meet ya man. Name's Cyborg."

"Azeal," the Emparite grunted, shaking the hand as his eyes scanned over the room he found himself in. "You're a member of the Teen Titans, aren't you?" he asked in interest, pleased to be able to speak to another one of their members.

"Got that right." He nodded in enthusiasm. A look of pride and wonder crossed his face as he rubbed his chin, finding himself contemplating just what it may look from the outside. "It's a bit much to explain, but I'll make a go of a simple description for now. We all have powers most humans don't, and we use them to keep normal people safe from harm."

Azeal blinked in wonder as he swung his legs round, forcing himself to sit up in the bed. He placed a hand out in front of himself, and grunted with small effort as fire suddenly began burning in a small ball in the middle of his palm. "You mean powers like this?" he clarified in form of a question. He caught Cyborg's nod and found himself thinking aloud. "These are abilities not found within normal humans, I take it. Why did you choose to protect them?"

Cyborg shrugged, turning around to read another machine in attempt to avoid the question. "Just seemed like the right thing to do, I guess. Could ask you the same: why'd you come to Earth to warn us?"

Azeal sat for a moment in silence, contemplating what was asked of him. A small smile appeared on his face as a soft chuckle loosed from his lips. "It seemed like the right thing to do."

Cyborg laughed and turned to face him again. "Know where you're coming from there man. Now, lemme warn ya-" he drew closer, speaking in hushed tones as if he was spilling a large secret. "-Robin's coming down here to ask you a few questions; you know the same sorta stuff like why'd you come here, yadda yadda yadda." He waved his hand round in a circle, grinning as he said the words. "I'll be in the background checking your vitals and updating our systems on how to treat you – do you know how many things I found out don't go with you system? Anyway-" he shook his head, realising he was sidetracking. "-just answer them as best and as honestly as you can. We've been thinking about what you asked, and as long as we think we can trust you, we'll let you hole up in the tower for a while."

Azeal's eyes brightened in an instant. It was truly the best news he had heard since he had come to the planet. A grin spread on his face at the thought of it, though one main question formed on the tip of his tongue: "Do you believe me?"

Cyborg spluttered awkwardly for a moment, not knowing what to say. As he went to open his mouth, the sudden '_whoosh' _of the metallic doors sliding open sounded around them, making him clamp his mouth shut. His uncertainty was answered just in time as Robin arrived, negating the need for him to answer the question.

"Good to see you're awake," Robin stated formally as he entered the room. This time, he didn't pull out a chair and sit near him, instead he stood rigid, arms folded and looking completely stoic. "Do you remember me?"

Azeal felt like letting out a small snort. "Logically, it would make sense for me to. After all, you came into my cell and interrogated me, then crushed my hopes of ever escaping such a place, resulting in my attempt of escaping on my own." He bore a fanged smile now, and Cyborg found himself torn between laughing and worrying sincerely, for Azeal's words contained a surprising amount of venom. "So yes, I remember you Robin."

The Titan did not even look abashed or insulted by the way he had been spoken to. It was, after all, his decision to leave Azeal within the labs. His decision had meant Azeal was subjected to possibly another few days more of fear and annoyance whilst locked in that room. Robin found himself again pondering the idea that decisions would be so much easier to make if he knew what would happen afterwards. Hindsight was twenty/twenty after all, and far too often Robin found himself wondering if another decision would have lead to a better course of action.

"I did what was best under the circumstances," the Titan answered with a dark breath. "I didn't know if you could be trusted. I _still_ don't know if you can be trusted. But the fact that you escaped from there and didn't attack or destroy anything buys you some merit in my book." His scowl deepened in one smooth movement, making him look infinitely more imposing than his lithe frame would suggest. "But why did you _really_ come to Earth? You have to have laid out _some_ sort of plans, otherwise why would have Cinderblock been waiting where you landed, and Plasmus when you escaped the labs?"

Azeal found himself torn between annoyance and rage, and found himself speaking before he thought. "I came to Earth because I thought you all worth saving. Unlike the Elders that lead my race, I wanted to see and experience the worlds of the 'lesser races'." He stopped and breathed, only now just comprehending Robin's last words. "I was followed in both circumstances?" he whispered in thought, brow creasing in concentration. "Logically, I can understand why you would come to such a conclusion. The fact that I was followed in both circumstances alludes to someone knowing of my presence here before my landing." He stopped in wonder, gripping his hands together. "The only logical conclusion would be that someone knows of my existence on Earth, and that they wish to remove me from Earth. However, I didn't tell anyone of my arrival, so I do not know how explain such a circumstance."

Cyborg felt a laugh move past his lips. "Man, if you keep chatting in logic circles, you and Robin are gonna be the best of pals in no time!" His laugh continued until he saw the _seething_ glare that Robin sent him, and instantly issued a quiet apology and set about working again.

The leader frowned as he contemplated Azeal's words. If you truly made no effort in contacting anyone, and no one on Earth knew of your arrival on Earth by your volition, is it possible that someone within your race could have contacted someone on Earth?"

Azeal let the question sit as he thought about it. Subconsciously he drew his legs in, sitting cross legged on the bed. "It may be possible," he conceded, "however, my race are very arrogant in their beliefs. They consider humanity a 'lesser race' – because not all of you have prenatal abilities, they deem you a developing society. I think the only Earth-based equivalent you could understand would be if the colony of America contacted a country of world thirds like Africa for financial aid. It's possible, but whoever did it would be subject to much scrutiny from the rest of our civilisation."

Robin nodded in understanding, overlooking Azeal's confusion of the 'third world'. After having lived with Starfire for so long, he was beginning to understand aliens' confusion with Earth terms. "I suppose I can understand that." He shook his head and blinked heavily behind his mask. "If you claim with such adamant determination that you did nothing; I think I can believe you. The problem lies in that if you didn't contact them, someone from your planet did. And if they didn't, that means something much worse is here on Earth."

He let out a smooth breath as he contemplated the weight of everything playing out before him. "Since it seems that you're being hunted, for whatever reason, I would suppose that it's best if we keep you here until we can find out what's happening. If someone's planning something for you, I'd feel better if you were safe here, under our supervision."

If someone had chosen to hunt after this one lone alien teenager, then who was Robin to look the other way? He was a superhero, using everything in his knowledge to protect everyone from those that would seek to cause harm on them. The fact that Azeal was an alien with control over fire didn't change the fact he needed protecting. It was one decision Robin could make knowing that the course he was choosing was the best possible course of action.

He nodded once more before indicating Cyborg. "Speak to Cyborg here about the general basics in the Tower. He'll be able to show you where the guest room is, as well as the areas you'll be able to access. I'm afraid that since we're not sure about you yet, you're going to be under lockdown when we're out on a mission, or in hours after we've gone to bed. Be sure to explain to him what you need as basics; I'm afraid we don't know anything about your race, and so you're going to have to let us know all the important things, especially if there's any allergies your entire race suffers, or if you all can't eat specific foods." He glanced down to his hand as he drew his communicator, and looked back up as he began thumbing buttons. "That should be it for now, I'll speak to the rest of the team and make sure they know not to ambush you in one large meeting." He glanced back at Cyborg. "Anything you need, any problems, you know how to contact me."

He turned and left, knowing that this was one decision in which the good _surely_ had to outweigh the bad. He just hoped the rest of the team could see it that way.

* * *

"That is most glorious news!"

Of course Starfire would be excited upon hearing such news. She had expressed her opinion many times about the subject. Now she knew that Azeal was staying in the tower, in company of people in this strange world, she fully supported Robin's decision. Knowing such a reaction was near enough guaranteed, Robin decided to tell the news to Starfire first. He could build up to the person he knew would have the biggest problem with the idea; Raven.

"Though I must ask of you Robin; why have you chosen this course of action?" Curious emerald eyes blinked in childish innocence as she voiced the question. "You made your opinion on the matter very clear the last time Azeal asked of you such a request. Why have you now offered him a place of safety within our tower?"

"It's the right decision to make," Robin answered on reflex, biting his lip as he saw Starfire's expression fall into a small frown. She didn't believe that for a moment, and had obvious trouble wording such qualms. A small sigh escaped Robin's lips as a tiny smile crossed his face. "I need to help him. Superpowers or not, he's being hunted by someone. It's our duty as the Teen Titans to look after someone in trouble." He watched as Starfire's expression refused to change, and he let out a small laugh despite himself. "I need to know I've made the right decision this time round. I've made so many in the course of leading this team, and we can all say that some have been... less than ideal."

Starfire nodded, happy that she had got the complete answer she sought. "Robin," she whispered, grasping his hands within hers. "You may have made decisions that were not ideal within the past, but you have always endeavoured to make sure they achieve good results, even if their path is through darkness. I trust you with these decisions because of this. It is the reason I chose to stay on Earth; I knew I could be safe whilst with you, and I knew that no matter what would happen, you would always seek to do the right thing. And you have not been a disappointment," she furthered as she cupped his chin within her hand. "Everyone makes a choice with impulsive urges. Only you have thought out every possible consequence of your decision-making. Such is why we follow your assessments without question. Regardless of the amount of time spent, the result is always the best one possible for everyone."

Heat began welling up in Robin's cheeks, and he found himself awkwardly avoiding meeting her gaze. Embarrassment flushed through him, and he was sure he was fast losing all the self control he had while wearing the mask.

"Thanks Star," he said appreciatively before he kissed her gently on the cheek. Her own cheeks turned a brighter shade of orange at the contact, letting out a girlish giggle afterwards. "I needed to hear that."

"It was my pleasure Robin," she replied with that winning smile that had melted his heart all that time ago. "I admit I may not know the many phrases of turn that you use on Earth, but as you have all always pointed out, I do wear sleeves on my heart." Her face was a perfect mixture of sweet innocence, and Robin found himself unable to correct her wording. "I understand that sometimes people need to hear certain prompts, and I am more than happy to express these words."

Another smile bloomed on Robin's face. That was the easy part over, now he only had to build his way up.

* * *

Beast Boy's reaction was far less vocal than he would have expected. He simply gaze a confused stare for a moment, followed by a shrug and another of his grins. He continued to pace around the living room, muttering non-sensities as he continued to search for the elusive television remote control.

"Dude, that's pretty cool. I mean, even if he turns out to be a big, evil criminal of ultimate doom, at least we'll have him in our own house, so we'll hopefully be ready." He stopped and leapt at the cushions, only to sigh in disappointment as he returned unsuccessful. "If he's really a good guy, then all the better. Since we helped him, he might decide to not let the big bad smoosh us into little piles of goo!"

Robin looked away as Beast Boy morphed into a mouse and crawled under the sofa now, squeaking loudly in disappointment with every second. "I know you went to see him Beast Boy," he said in controlled anger, listening with a depraved sense of humour as the mouse squeaked in alarm. "So you can stop pretending that you're not bothered one way or the other. You opted to go and visit him, to make friends with him. Because of that, I want your opinion on this. Can he be trusted?"

The mouse abruptly bloomed into human form, leaving Beast Boy still on all fours on the floor, seemingly attempting to sniff at a cracker buried within the carpet. "Uh... well..." he stumbled in alarm, his mind racing at what he could say to excuse himself. "How'd you know?"

A smirk took over Robin's face. "I plan everything, remember? I placed a tiny camera on one of the screws within Azeal's cell, just in case he attempted anything. That's how I knew he'd escaped before the labs did, and why I told them to let him free. I saw that he made sure he didn't attempt to hurt anyone, and the amount of time he spent making sure his escape attempts didn't harm anyone."

Beast Boy let out a breath he didn't realise he was holding. "He can't go back to his home world, you know that. When he was explaining it, I _knew_ he was telling the truth. It was the same expression and tone I had when Mento told me I could never be normal again, because of this glorious green skin!" A soft, sad laugh escaped his mouth, and he found himself looking at the floor in brief depression. "You did the right thing letting him stay here Rob." He looked now at the leader, his eyes burning with familiar sincerity. "The poor guy's stuck here now; he's got no choice but to stay here... I mean, how easy is it to get a ship capable of space-travel? Unless of course you plan on robbing anyone of the big superheroes..." He shook his head, focusing again on his point. "You've shown him that we're good people, and that maybe if he's right, that we're worth saving. You letting him stay here's given him a choice most of us didn't ever get the chance to have."

Robin frowned at his words, not understanding the meaning behind them. "What do you mean?" he found himself asking.

"Dude, I'm _green_!" he exclaimed with a grin, pointing to himself. "Star's an orange alien, Cy's half robot, and Raven's a demonspawn meant to end the world! You think any of us could ever have a normal life? You've given Azeal the choice to be able to find a normal life here. Even if he decides not to be normal, at least you gave him the opportunity." He laughed a hollow laugh as he again focused on Robin. "Dude, you're the only one of us that even gets to make that choice. You hide behind a secret identity, so secret we don't even know your real name, or even what your eyes look like! You can give it up one day and just be a normal guy. No matter how awesome I am, and regardless of my killer looks; I can't live a normal life, _ever_. Not really."

Robin rubbed the back of his head, feeling the impact of his friend's words. He'd never really considered such a thing; that he was the only one of them that could live a normal life. Here he thought that the decision was forever made for him, but now Beast Boy was making him truly second guess it. The thoughts made him truly appreciate how many choices people made on an everyday scale, regardless of their importance.

"Dude, it was the right thing to do," the changeling reassured him. "If he screws around with that, it's on _his_ head. You've planned this out, we all know that you've rigged the tower with who-knows-how-many security systems, and you've run every single background check you can think of about him, and his story." He grinned suddenly and punched Robin lightly on the arm. "You make Star worry when you stay up all night researching, you know? Dude, the amount of times we've had her floating around in complete worry about you. Did you even know that she's trying to find anything to rubbish or prove his story, just so you don't work all night?"

Robin found himself stumped for words. Again he was working too long, too much, even though he thought he'd improved. The fact that everyone had noticed it, and were taking it on themselves to help him regardless truly showed that he was slipping into old habits again.

"Dude, seriously, I don't know how you sit working all night long," said Beast Boy with a light taunting edge to his voice. "I mean, between Star and work? Most guys wouldn't even think twice about dumping and burning the work just to spend a few minutes with her! You're lucky she cares a lot about you. Any other girl would have left you ages ago."

Again Robin found himself blinking in wonder. Beast Boy's words truly hit home. Here he'd come to make sure Beast Boy was okay with the decision to let Azeal stay, and instead Beast Boy had made Robin realise a number of things he was doing without realising it. He went to speak again, closing his mouth as Beast Boy let out a victorious cheer. Remote grasped firmly in his hand, all else didn't matter past the mind-numbing, drool-fest that was marathon television watching.

Sensing that this conversation was over, Robin nodded and left the room silently. He already knew Cyborg's views on the matter; he believed the story could be true, and having Azeal round was the best idea in the situation. That only left Raven to talk to.

He gulped nervously as he went to find her. This was certainly going to be a fun conversation...

* * *

"It's your choice."

Raven refused to say much on the matter, instead settling for a glare that would send almost everyone in the tower running for their lives. Unfortunately for her, Robin was determined to get a true answer from the girl, and a stubborn Robin seemed to win over Raven's death-glare each time.

Instead, Robin moved closer to her, stopping a few paces away. After all, she was hovering in the lotus position a few feet above the roof, making Robin's job of speaking to her all that much more awkward. "That's not what you really think, and we both know it."

She cracked open an eye and focused on him, her anger burning obviously within. However, she sighed deeply in frustration, dropping gracefully to her feet. "I explained it before Robin. He can use magic. There's no telling what he can and can't do. For all we know, he could be far more powerful than he lets on." She closed her eyes again, pinching the bridge of her nose. "I'm no expert in the matter, but I know what I felt. He has vast untapped potential, far more than my own limits – and I'm half demon. If he ever used all his power, the results could very well kill us all."

Robin nodded grimly. He guarded the sense of relief and joy that he was getting her to speak her mind, instead focusing on remaining as indifferent as possible. He didn't want Raven reading his emotions too well; otherwise she'd clam up again.

"Then surely it'd be best to keep him here?" he countered evenly. "If we think he's likely to unleash too much power, there should be some sort of inhabitation we can place on him to stop that happening."

Raven looked away and pulled her hood over her head, looking out at the distant shoreline. "That's not advisable," she replied as evenly as he. "I tried to inhibit my own power, thinking it would stop Trigon using me as his Gem. Large sums of power can't be contained, only destroyed."

Robin stepped closer to her in alarm. "So you're saying we should _destroy_ him? On the off-chance his powers might go crazy?"

She shrugged despondently. "I don't know. Regardless of his power, he's still a sentient being. I might be able to believe his story, but I don't trust him. You made this decision when you first met him, however subconscious it was." She took another deep breath, watching now as the sun began to slowly set. "I'll support you in the choice. I might not like it, but I'll support you regardless." A soft smile graced her lips as she turned around, focusing now on him. "You make good decisions Robin. No matter what, you see them through to ensure they achieve results that are best for everyone. _That's_ why you're the leader of our team. If I was in charge, I'd never have considered such a thing." She stopped and laughed sadly, staring at her open hands. "I suppose the saying is true; women definitely can hold a grudge." She looked up, speaking now with guarded emotions, "You've all trusted me, even though I'm half demon. I can't thank you enough for that, and I can understand why you trust in Azeal because of his warning, and his appearance of wanting to help. But don't expect me to trust him for a very, _very_ long time. If ever."

Robin nodded, stepping closer to her to let his presence felt around her. "You shouldn't always lock yourself away from the world Raven," he advised, smiling grimly at the slight hypocrisy in his words. "It might mean that you get hurt less by being less attached, but it also means you hurt others more."

She shrugged again. "It's my preference. My emotions control my powers. If I want to make sure I don't hurt, it serves everyone else well."

"But what about other people's emotions? What if their powers are controlled by them?" he countered, frowning behind the mask. "Since you were swapped into Star's body, you've made sure to avoid doing anything to her that would upset the balance in her powers. Is she the only exception?"

Raven blinked heavily, feeling a harsh burn in her forehead. Tensing deeply, she forced the feeling back, focusing as best she could on the sounds of the gulls around her. "Then let everyone tell me what emotions relate to their powers, and I won't cause them in them!" she snapped, causing a number of windows on the floor below to shatter loudly. "I don't argue with your choices Robin, don't disagree with mine," she advised darkly, clenching her fists in obvious anger.

He sighed, taking a step backwards. "I don't want to see people make mistakes that will only hurt themselves. I don't want my _friends_ to be hurt." He stepped closer again, noting the slight reduction in her anger shakes. "It's your choice, and I respect that. But I just wanted to let you know that your opinion matters in the choices I make that affect our team. The last time you truly made an effort for all of us was when Trigon was about to doom the world. You showed that you do care for us, so don't wait until the next apocalypse to do the same."

He turned and left shortly afterwards, leaving Raven to stew in thought on the roof. She understood his words completely, and knew that he was right. She closed her eyes once more, unable to stop herself taking in the emotions from everyone in the tower. She couldn't change who she was, no more than Robin could change who he was. Small changes may be able to be made for some time, but deep down, she would always be Raven.

No decision made of well-wishing could ever change that.

* * *

Robin found himself again staring at the large mirror in his room. Everything he'd discussed today weighed heavily on his mind. Everyone in the tower had so many choices taken away from them, unable to stop and consider different paths everyone else walked on a daily basis. His friends were the ones who truly had decisions made for them.

No matter how much he tried to convince himself otherwise, _he_ was the one becoming Robin every day.

Beast Boy had made him understand how far he kept everyone at a distance, hiding them from what he truly was. Raven made him understand how much that truly could hurt the people he considered his closest friends. Cyborg had let him know that no matter how ludicrous the stories people came out with, it was in everyone's best interests to take the time and listen to them, just in case they proved to have even a chance of coming true. Azeal had forced him to realise that the obvious logical answers weren't always the definitive ones, and that someone's choice, somewhere, to take an illogical path could be the explanation behind everything.

And Starfire forced him to understand that many of his own decisions were made with the feelings of regret pulling their strings. Past experiences would always lead to further someone's understanding of something, though could always lead to equally bad choices if the past completely clouded someone's vision. He was the leader of a team of superheroes, a team of his best friends. He thought out every choice up to three steps ahead, though would manage to overlook the simplest stepping stone on their way.

His team's morale was surprisingly low and conflicted. They all envied him for his ability to be normal, and that he could one day make that choice. They weren't spending nearly enough time together, understanding everyone else's faults, and the choices they were all making that were upsetting everyone else.

And he was no exception.

But perhaps he could begin to change one of those in the immediate future. He heard Starfire close the door of his room, and smelt the strange combination of alien fruits and berries that her hair always managed to smell like. She was the only person the in tower to have ever seen his eyes, and he'd only let her see them the once.

"Robin?" she whispered as she inched closer to him, wrapping her arms around him from behind, sensing something was wrong.

He shook his head, pulling from her grip. Her eyes were a perfect expression of confusion and hurt as she stared into the hollow eyes Robin always wore.

"Not Robin," he told her, shaking his head before he removed his mask. He stared into her face, watching the joy and elation that passed through her brightening expression. He took a deep breath and knew that this path of action was long overdue. "My name's Richard Grayson. I'm the person under the mask, the human underneath the soulless eyes."

The visible delight that swept through her face told him that this choice was without a doubt the right one to have made.


	7. AntiVirus: Malicious Software

_Disclaimer_

**Teen Titans** is a registered trademark of DC Comics and Cartoon Network Inc. All trademarked characters, locations, themes and ideas are used without permission in a work of fan-created fiction. The following has been done without profit for purely entertainment purposes. All original concepts, characters, themes and ideas within are the copyrighted property of the author, and are not to be reproduced without his prior consent.

_

* * *

_

_Their screams_

_The burning flesh_

_The sounds of skin ripping from flesh_

_The taste of blood in the air_

_Even now it haunted her dreams  
_

* * *

Everything was changing.

So long had she searched for him, only to find him trapped in that ice cocoon of his. She'd released him, and after his pleading and begging, she had released his friends too.

Now she found herself the new leader of their ragtag group.

So much had needed to be repaired from the moment she took over. Not just the physical state of their base, but everything ranging from their group mentality to their pathetic excuses for battle plans. Everything before that was a wishy-washy attempt at dominance, ad libbed at the last minute when everything went wrong. It took weeks to drill other methods into them, and she felt that soon enough, they would be ready.

They needed to understand the brilliance of planning everything out, and that even in defeat, they could be successful.

Behind her she heard the tell-tale clacking of mechanical legs on marble floor, and found herself fighting the urge to smile. With any luck, their plans would be coming to fruition soon.

"I got everything prepared," the person behind her said in a high, nasally tone. "Once we plant this device on that worthless bucket of bolts, those crud munching, snot eaters won't know what's happening to them!"

The girl smiled to herself as she folded her arms, not turning to meet her acquaintance. "I trust you have not told the others of this plan?"

"Nah, those drool bags don't know anything," he said with a whiny laugh. "They think this is gonna be the biggest heist of the century!"

The girl smirked darkly. "I suppose in a way it is."

Behind her the boy nodded before speaking in a dark tone, "I just wanna let you know; if you do what that crud eater before us did, I'll make sure I crush you so small not even a _microscope_ would be able to find you! You built us back up again Shimmer, we're stronger than ever, so don't ever try to screw us!"

The girl's eyes whipped round in an instant, and her mind reached for the molecules swimming in his lungs. With no effort they became pure water, and the boy dropped suddenly to the floor, convulsing in horror. "Make no mistake Gizmo, I won't be leaving any time soon." She stepped closer to him, standing over him in all her unholy glory. "But rest assured, talk to me like that, and I'll let you drown next time." She snapped her fingers and let the water return to air, leaving the boy trembling and gasping on the floor.

"The Teen Tyrants are under my rule, and no one will stand in our way, Titans or otherwise."

* * *

_**Teen Titans**_

**_Corruption's End_**

**AntiVirus; Malicious Software**

* * *

"Cheer up man, she's like that with everyone."

Regardless of Cyborg's reassurances, Azeal couldn't help but think he had somehow annoyed Raven. He merely only brushed past her as he went to make coffee, and she gave him the darkest glare he'd ever seen before she turned into a black ethereal image of her namesake and phased through the floor.

"Yeah dude," Beast Boy agreed in enthusiasm. "It took her almost a year to even start tolerating me! So don't take it too hard!"

Azeal shrugged. "Her actions dictate that I have offended her somehow. It's the only logical conclusion that can be drawn."

Cyborg chuckled at his words. "Man, I'm half machine; half of me runs on logistics systems telling me what's going to be the most logical outcome of anything. Trust me, Raven _ain't_ one of them. When it comes to women, logic gets thrown out the window."

A frown crossed over Azeal's face as he contemplated the words. It was strange for him... so alien, that there were creatures that weren't as based on logic as his own race. He stopped and stared at the coffee in his hands, losing himself in the murky brown liquid. Even the actions of the Titans having someone guarding him at all times he was awake were logical. He sighed heavily, and raised an eyebrow as Beast Boy yelped and leapt backwards.

"What?" the alien asked.

"Erm," Beast Boy stammered as he looked around for an excuse. He began to laugh nervously, pressing his forefingers together sheepishly. "Well, when you were first in the labs, Cy did some scans of your blood that you left in the car, and found out that your waste products have poison in them. What you breathe out is waste, dude! No offense, but I don't feel like breathing in poison any time soon!"

Cyborg cleared his throat as he noticed the look of confusion that passed over their guest's face. "My scans showed that ya respiratory processes use nitrogen, and that it had formed cyanide within your blood stream. I don't know if you know this, but cyanide's poisonous to humans. I don't think what you breathe out is going to kill anyone though, regardless of Beast Boy's freak-outs."

Surprising them both, Azeal laughed a small amused laugh. "I can see why you came to such a conclusion, but you are wrong. My race uses nitrogen to produce a natural neurotoxin to enable us to fend off predators. Cyanide is produced as the first stages of it, in small amounts as to give ourselves a natural immunity to some poisons, as our predators utilise those too in their endaevours to feed on us."

Cyborg did a double take. "You guys have _predators?_ As in, something hunts and eats _you_?"

"Yes." Azeal nodded simply. "Is that not the case here on Earth?"

"Man, humans are top of the chain!" Cyborg declared passionately. "A few people a year get eaten by a shark or a tiger, but that's just 'cos they're stupid enough to go annoy one. Natural selection at it's best."

Beast Boy grinned devilishly. "So what do these things look like then?"

Azeal frowned and glanced round the room, looking for something to compare them to. He scanned every surface he could, unable to find anything comparable. He was just about to give up when Raven walked through the doors and back into the room, about to bite into the banana in her hand.

"Deqanex!" Azeal shrieked in sudden fear as a violent gale swept through the room. Raven found herself knocked backwards into the wall as the wind attacked her hand full force, spraying banana over the wall.

There was a deadly silence for a moment as it slowly dawned on everyone what had just happened. "Dude, it's like CSI: Banana killers," Beast Boy joked in a whisper as he moved ever further away from both Raven and Azeal.

"About to be 'Death of an Emparite'," Cyborg replied, he too distancing himself from the table. While Azeal was only a guest, he would no doubt have to learn the hard way the full tempest that was Raven's wrath.

It looked like he'd be learning very soon indeed.

"What," she growled as she picked herself up from the floor, light bulbs shattering with her barely contained rage. "Was that?"

"De-deqanex," Azeal grunted in between fearful gasps, his attention still focused on the pile of goop that was a banana now splattered on the wall, and partially over Raven's cape.

Her expression darkened, and she took a step closer to him as black ether swam around her hands. She could sense the genuine fear coming off him, and as much as she may have liked to kid herself, it was all directed at the remains of her banana. "One chance," she hissed with deadly venom. "If you don't have a good reason, I swear to Azar you're going to regret ever coming to this planet."

He swallowed and looked back at her, tearing his gaze away from the remains of the fruit. "On my home world, there are predators known as deqanex. They live just outside our civilisations, and will occasionally snatch an unsuspecting person from their home or the streets, and drag them into the ruins or forests they call home. What you were about to eat looks like their young; the adults can use the yellow feelers to reach and grab victims, and their large fangs are hidden in the flesh within."

Raven found herself staring at him in genuine disbelief and surprise. The ether around her hands began to slowly spark and fade as she felt the similar feelings roll off Cyborg and Beast Boy both, and the genuine sense of fear and foreboding as Azeal related the story.

As hard as it was to believe, he was telling the truth.

Regardless, she couldn't believe the emotions she felt, and asked in heavy sarcasm, "Your people are preyed on by sentient bananas?"

"_Humans_ eat infant deqanex?" Azeal retorted in equal bewilderment. It truly made no sense to him; how could humanity, who were barely grasping space travel, manage to travel to his home world and collect infant deqanex?

Raven pulled a hand down her face as she sighed heavily. Black ether surrounded the goo that was her banana, and with the smallest of thoughts it splattered over Azeal's face, leaving him screaming in primal fear at his supposed predator. "Next time, don't hit me," she advised darkly. "Next time, I'll throw you out of the window, regardless of whether you can fly or not." She turned and left quickly after, pointedly ignoring the cacophony of emotions rolling off everyone present in the room.

"Dude..." Beast Boy whispered in awe even as he wiped banana goo from the alien's face. "That was epic on _so_ many levels! I don't think I've ever seen Raven want to kill _anyone_ other than me as badly!" He stopped and snorted as Azeal calmed down and breathed his thanks. "Sooo," he drawled. "You're afraid of bananas?"

Azeal shuddered as he remembered the feeling of the fruit's flesh covering his face. "Humans eat deqanex?"

Cyborg groaned, sensing this would loop for a while. "So are these predators of yours found on any other planet? Or they exclusive to X'ienaqs?" It was possible, after all, that if they were found on other planets, they could be one and the same. Inwardly, he fought the urge to laugh. How much would it confuse and shock people if bananas were proved to be alien meat?

"I am unsure," Azeal admitted with a frown. "Most documentation of other planets on X'ienaqs is only available to the Prophets – the most important people on my planet. However, I do recall reading somewhere tales about creatures that resembled the deqanex." He stopped and considered the notion. "Tell me, do these... 'bananas' you eat on Earth grow on trees?"

Cyborg nodded as a small grin covered his mouth. "Yeah, they grow on trees, and they start out green, then the yellow colour you saw Raven trying to eat, then finally black when they go off."

"Curious," Azeal whispered as he looked at what remained of the banana. He picked it up tentatively and examined it with a wary eye. "It does _look_ like an infant deqanex, and what you described is the perfect infantile life cycle. After they turn black, it takes roughly a year for their sentience to develop. After that, they begin to eat mulch from their surroundings, and eventually they need so much energy that they must resort to becoming carnivorous."

"Dude, I am _never_ eating another banana again!" Beast Boy declared adamantly. There was no way he was going to eat anything that was an animal _anywhere_, he would even give up tofu if someone proved that was a living creature in another planet!

The laugh building in Cyborg's throat finally erupted full force. "Man, that is too good! Y'know, I thought you were just messing with us at first, but _no one_ is stupid enough to attack Raven just for comic relief!" He quickly opened up the computer on his arm and stared at the screen, updating the information stored within by a series of mental commands. All they needed to do was prove it, and they could throw the ultimate curve ball into vegetarian's campaigns! He smiled as his work was completed just moments before he stood and clapped Azeal on the shoulder in one fluid motion. "Look man, I'm sorry if I offended ya by laughing, but it's not the kinda thing you'll hear on Earth. There's probably a few things here that could make you just want to cry with laughter. In the mean time-" he glanced away and focused on the clock, reading the time displayed in a fraction of a second. "I've gotta go meet with Star. She never did want to let up on those Tamaranian lessons..." he admitted as he rubbed the back of his head, now slightly regretting his endeavours to do as much as he could in a day. "Yo, BB, you cool to look after Azeal for a while?"

"No problemo dude!" replied the changeling with gusto. "I'll introduce him to the brilliance that is our new games system, and I'll even make sure everything remains in one piece!"

Cyborg turned away with a half-amused grunt. "Are you talking about Azeal, or the tower?"

Beast Boy shrunk under the curious expression of the newest alien. "Well, hopefully both! If not, at least we'll have one more jigsaw puzzle for a rainy day!"

The half-machinal Titan could only shake his head in amusement as he left the room. Behind him, his sensors recognised the smells of burning animal flesh, and a chuckle left his lips. At least, if nothing else, Azeal was learning that payback was often best expressed through abuse of powers in the tower. As long as it was kept tame, there was nothing wrong with a little friendly rivalry... as long as it just remained friendly.

* * *

Cyborg never even noticed when Starfire stopped teaching, and instead floated to his side, genuinely worried for his state of being. The man was just distracted, wondering what could happen in the far-off distance. It was obvious what Robin had planned, though only Cyborg and Raven truly seemed to know, whereas Starfire and Beast Boy only had an inkling to the truth.

He only realised he had zoned out when Starfire began to wave like a maniac in front of him, trying to draw his attention.

"Cyborg, you had me most worried," she said as focus returned to his human eye. "I was afraid that the fairies had taken you forever that time."

It took a moment more for Cyborg to fully understand the meaning of Starfire's words. Her confusion at 'being away with the fairies' made her truly believe that someone's mind had been stolen by tiny women that floated around in glittery tutus. It was cute, if not extremely funny.

"Sorry Star," he apologised on reflex. "I was just thinking about things. You know what Robin's planning with Azeal, don't you?" He snorted even as she went to respond. "Hell, I think we all know it, even if _Robin_ doesn't."

"I am aware of what is the likely course of action," Starfire responded as she sat on the desk Cyborg was sat at. "But I am also worried. It is obvious that Azeal has not been treated too kindly by either Raven or Robin himself. If the plan is truly what we believe it to be, there could be every chance he would refuse us, based on such their treatment."

"Nah, I don't think he would," Cyborg told her with conviction. "I mean, from what I've seen of him, he's stronger than that. He's got a head on his shoulders, and more than that; he came here to help us. Out of all of us, Robin and Raven both know what that feels like, hell, it was those two and BB that actually wanted to protect Jump in the first place!"

Starfire considered the idea with interest. "I suppose that is right. But on the hand of another, I do not know myself what to believe. There are many paths we can take from the place we are in at the moment, and I truly do believe Robin is taking the right one. I can only hope that this does not turn out to be a repeat."

Cyborg nodded gravely, understanding her words. He went to reply to her, only to stop at the last moment as the loud, wailing klaxon sounded through the tower. Of course, there would always be some idiot causing trouble in Jump, wouldn't there?

* * *

Sometimes, there was the truly horrible feeling that hit them all, like they'd all walked so obviously into a trap.

The call had come in, alerting them to a series of robberies in the downtown financial district. Apparently, the villain had been chased to an old abandoned warehouse – where else? – whereupon the police had met resistance as they tried to enter.

Thus, the Titans were called in.

Azeal was locked in his room while they were out, so they had no worries about the alien wandering around the tower. Even if he could, the multiple security systems would make sure they'd know about it.

In the meanwhile, the Titans found themselves waiting for what was obviously an ambush.

"False alarm?" asked Beast Boy in innocent hope without so much as a glance away from the shadows.

"You can only hope."

The voice that drifted to them was harsh and yet softly feminine at the same time, thick with the traces of feminine allure. From the shadows walked forth a woman with a perfect svelte figure, which oozed sexuality as much as the leather that was near enough draped over her skin. Short, punk style ginger hair coated her head, and heavy black makeup framed her eyes and lips. As she walked, the very ground around her turned to gold for a few moments before reverting back to concrete.

"Who are you supposed to be?" Raven asked in a voice that showed she didn't really care. "The whore of Babylon?"

The woman before them snapped her fingers, causing Raven to cry out as her cape became solid lead. It pulled her into the floor instantly, and she found herself struggling to breathe, let alone remove herself from the offending cape. "The name's Shimmer, magi-slut. And you're looking at the new, improved Hive Five." She smirked darkly and suddenly thrust a hand forth, screaming, "Tyrants, Obliterate!"

And all hell broke loose.

Starfire shrieked as an electric net suddenly swooped around her and pulled her to the ground, filling her with hundreds of volts of electricity and making everyone else gag on the smell of burning flesh and hair. Beast Boy found himself knocked into the nearby wall by a giant eyeball with the force of a wrecking ball, whilst Cyborg grunted and strained to push back the sheer hulking strength that belonged to the brute that was Mammoth.

Robin was the only that was faring well. He leapt above a horde of Billys and swept them all with a brilliant kick, using another to propel himself into the air as a dark portal appeared beneath him, sucking all heat from the air before the silent Kyd Wykkyd leapt out and scrambled in vain for the nimble acrobat.

Robin flipped backwards and stopped as he extended his bo staff, twirling it in his hand. He growled as he sped forwards, only to cry out in alarm as the staff suddenly became lead in his grip, dropping him to the floor. He loosed himself of the staff as quickly as he could, replacing it with two lighter, steel birdarangs. They were thrown expertly at the girl, about to cut her enough to draw blood until they both just simply turned to water in the air.

He had to admit a level of grudging respect for the girl. She might have been an enemy, but she was good regardless. He dropped into a low crouch and smirked, long enough for Starfire to screech in anger as bolts of emerald fury slammed into the redhead's side, knocking her sideways and into a rotting wooden pole.

Shimmer's laspe in concentration caused air to fill Raven's lungs again as her cloak returned to cloth.

Furious black anger spilled from her hands and eyes both, wrapping its ethereal self around Shimmer with cold, relentless fury. The new leader found herself suddenly flung at See-More and Kyd Wykkyd both, knocking them all further into the walls of the warehouse itself.

"Don't touch the cloak," she hissed only just moments ahead of being knocked from the sky by a barrage of explosive eyeballs.

Above a pterodactyl screeched in anger as it plunged in for the kill, ripping at the flesh of multiple clones of the ever annoying Billy Numerous. Frustration became apparent on the ancient dinosaur's face just as it ballooned into an Ankylosaurus, falling down and crushing a few before it twisted and smacked more away with its barbed tail.

Cyborg grunted with effort as he overpowered Mammoth, flinging him with all his might at the nearby Billys, swatting them aside like bowling balls. He growled as he charged See-More, arm mechanising into a cannon before Gizmo's blast blindsided him, causing him to scream in pain as electricity surged through his systems.

He growled as he stood, ignoring the multiple error and corruption messages that filled his mechanical eye. It happened every time he was hurt, and every time system maintenance would clean it up. He growled as an arm twisted completely round his back, leaving his arms at a perfect one-eighty to each other. Power flooded through them both, and sonic waves smacked into See-More and Gizmo both. They both cried out as the energy flooded their eardrums, causing them to burst and their stomachs to heave in protest. Every blood cell in their body felt like bursting as the assault continued, stopping only when the mechanical titan was certain they were unconscious.

Shimmer growled as she stood back up, noting the state of everyone around her. Trained eyes focused on the one goal of their operation as a smirk crossed over her face. "Fall back!" she cried as she twisted the molecules of the air, forming solid steel between her team and the Titans.

Collecting themselves, the Titans stood around as the wall of steel literally disappeared before them, returning back to air and revealing the retreat of their enemies.

"Dude..." Beast Boy groaned inimitably as he rubbed his head. "_That_ was weird. Even by the normal standards we suffer."

Robin nodded, scanning the room for any final traps they may have left. When he was satisfied with the results, he gave the order for his own troops to move out. At the back of his mind, he could only begin to wonder about what was really going on behind the scenes. It seemed all too easy for them to attack only retreat like that, and they'd never caught sight of the jewellery they'd supposedly robbed either.

Something was definitely going on.

* * *

"We get a new leader, and look where it gets us," See-More grumbled angrily as he kicked an empty tin of food across the bare, rusty floors of their base. "In the same place as always; with our butts handed to us!"

Kyd Wykkyd nodded his silent agreement as Shimmer walked past, pointedly ignoring them both. Only Billy and Mammoth remained quiet with respect to her; Billy because he was too busy arguing with himself – or rather a clone of himself – and Mammoth didn't want to say anything bad about his kid sister.

"I was happier than a pig in muck when you let us free," said one of the Billys abruptly.

"But now we're not doing any better than a rusty chainsaw on a thousand year old oak!" the other finished for his clone.

Deciding she'd endured enough, Shimmer slammed her hands down on a broken table, forcing the very floor beneath all her complainers to melt beneath them. They all cried out as she made them sink through the foundations with sadistic glee, waiting until their wailing begs for mercy reached her ears before she turned the spots to water, letting them swim back to the surface.

Water turned back to concrete as she glared at them all, satisfied with her display of power. "You fools don't ever think of anything, do you?" she spat, glaring daggers of venom at them all. "Do you not remember me instructing you all to plan everything through?"

"Yeah, but you said that would be a sure-fire success, yessiree," said a Billy clone. He gulped instantly and leapt into his original self, swarming them with a sense of dizziness.

"I never said we'd win a fight outright though, did I?" she countered with a sure sense of self. "I planned everything out, and it worked perfectly. We were meant to lose that battle against the Titans just then."

See-More snorted in disbelief. "What's the point of that then? If you wanted us to let ourselves be beaten so easily, why not save the effort and humiliation and beat us yourself?"

Shimmer bared a fanged smirk. "If I'd told you that we needed to lose, how convincing would you have made it?" A multitude of shamed responses met her question, and yet again she smiled. "It worked, because you believed we were going to win. And we are," she promised as she gestured for Gizmo to stand beside her. "Show 'em what we managed to do Gizmo."

The midget genius cackled in enthusiasm as he stepped forwards and pressed a button on his suit, causing a small screen to blossom out of the bottom of his spider centre. It buzzed with static as he cursed and pressed more buttons, eventually displaying a perfect picture of a multitude of gears, oils and motors.

"What's that supposed to be?" grunted Mammoth as he scratched the annoying fuzz growing on his chin.

"The inside of that crud munching, bucket of bolts that thinks he's got any smarts with a computer system," Gizmo sneered in distaste at the mention of the Titan. After all, he'd actually gone in and helped the man, and he'd repaid him by flash-freezing him. "We've got a perfect little drone that's swimming round now, showing us this display. It's slowly turning all his systems into mindless, blank slates that can be mine to control." Almost to prove his point, the gears slowly changed to a deep, dark green colour, emblazoned with a bright yellow 'G' that shone egotistically at them through the screen.

He cackled once more and reduced the screen back into his pack. With eyes that shone through his goggles and a devilish smirk he declared, "In a few days, that rust bucket will be completely under Teen Tyrants control! And after that, we'll destroy them from the inside out, and make them wish they'd never crossed us in the first place!"

Shimmer smiled darkly, leaning lasciviously over a table. "One by one, the Titans will fall. And then Jump will learn what's terror is truly like when we hold all their lives in the palms of our hands."


	8. AntiVirus: Trojan Horse

_**Teen Titans**_

**_Corruption's End_**

**AntiVirus; Trojan Horse**

* * *

_Eveyday they faced the same possibility_

_They could die whilst during this_

_Yet never had it actually struck home_

_That was until his friends had died before his eyes_

_And he was next in line  
_

* * *

Cyborg was itchy.

He was damned if he could remember the last time the annoying feeling had assailed him, but it was definitely sometime before he received his 'upgrades'. Since then, he'd been lacking the basic human feelings such as the need for the toilet, the feeling of ticklishness, and the damned annoying itchiness that was assailing his body.

Looking back, he should have thought something about it. At the time though, he was far too busy trying in vain to alleviate the alien feeling dancing over his robotics.

"You really should get that seen to," Raven advised as she watched her friend scratch himself silly. "When was the last time you actually had an itch?"

"Can't say," Cyborg replied with a shrug. "But it's... so... damned... annoying!" he yelled in frustration, beginning to rub his back against the wall rather like a bear.

Raven quirked a brow in amusement. A small snicker escaped her, drowned out completely by the sounds of explosions from beneath them. With a frown, she pulled the hood of her cloak up, watching as Robin went through a training session with their new tenant. Inquisition filled her, and she flicked the switch in the observation room, allowing the sounds from the training room to filter in.

"You're not reacting fast enough," Robin said emphatically. "Every second counts when you're in a fight. You've seen what Cinderblock can do – you've _fought_ Plasmus. You need to be able to defend yourself as quickly as you can."

Azeal panted, wiping heavy sweat from his brow. "I don't see why. Logically I need not react as quickly as possible, only quick enough to protect myself from harm, and then strike back when opportunity shows itself."

"What if your opponent is faster than you?" Robin asked. He suddenly leapt into the air, twisting and coming down on Azeal hard. Knocking the alien to the floor, the Titan grabbed a handful of his top and growled menacingly, "What if your opponent is faster than you?"

Raven watched as she felt a surge of fear spike from the room. Billowing winds abruptly assaulted Robin, knocking him flying backwards, though he expertly flipped smoothly into a crouch. Azeal rose to his feet with considerably less grace, looking confused, afraid and humbled.

"We'll practice hand-to-hand," Robin instructed, falling into a defensive pose. "It will allow you to train your reaction times." He waited for a moment, obviously growing impatient as Azeal failed to form a defensive position. "You do _know_ how to fight, don't you?" the Boy Wonder asked.

Azeal nodded, lifting his arms with reluctance. "You are not my enemy," he said, tucking a fist under his chin and moving an elbow out. It looked like a more complicated Muay Thai stance, and Robin was already calculating what moves he was likely to pull off. "I do not wish to hurt you." He shook his head, dropping his guard for a moment. "My bones are stronger than those of humans, on par with the toughness of diamond. If I struck you, you would be grievously injured."

Robin smirked, allowing himself a slither of arrogance. "You won't be _able_ to hit me," he claimed, likewise dropping his stance for a moment. "Give it a try; I won't fight back."

Azeal shook his head, muttering a repetition of his words under his breath. Once again he pulled himself into a fighting stance before he leapt at Robin with what seemed like expert grace. He elbows lashed out at where Robin was, only to find the boy was bent back beneath the blow. Azeal twisted backwards and struck with his opposite elbow, only to miss again as Robin flipped backwards out of the way.

"See?" he gloated as he pulled himself from a crouch. He watched as Azeal nodded humbly and dropped his guard, quickly scanning the alien's elbows. "Why do you favour elbow strikes?" he asked, wondering if it was a martial arts technique native to Azeal's planet. "I saw that your fist clenched a few times when you struck, why didn't you use them?"

Azeal shook his head once more as he clenched his fists again. This time however, Robin noticed tiny little needles – no bigger than a hair – pop out from his knuckles and shine under the artificial light.

"I explained the basics to Cyborg the other day," the alien said as he lifted a fist to the light, allowing Robin better view of the fine needles. "My race produces a neurotoxin to allow us fend off our predators. It is pumped out of the quills you can see in my knuckles, and is able to kill an adult of my race in a matter of minutes." He stopped for a moment, lowering his arm as he sized Robin up with his eyes. "Adults of my race can grow up to six and a half foot tall, though have about the same muscle mass as an average adult human. You are not my enemy Robin," he repeated, unclenching his fists and letting the needles recede into flesh. "We only attack with our fists in do-or-die situations. I do not think an overdose of pentobarbital is beneficial to humans somehow."

Raven switched off the intercom, having heard enough. She turned away and focused on Cyborg, who was again trying to scratch his back – this time with a metal pole she was sure belonged to a machine in the room.

"He naturally produces poison," she stated as if it were the worst crime possible.

"Don't see why that's a big problem." Cyborg shrugged, sighing in acceptance he wasn't going to win the battle against the itch. "It's not actually a poison though," he explained, catching her off guard. "He's sort of right in that it's a neurotoxin; it's actually a barbiturate – its more of a depressant than anything. Slows down organs, brain activity, that sorta thing. It's what they use to put animals to sleep."

Raven laughed a humourless laugh. "At least we can use him to deal with Beast Boy."

Cyborg looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "You act you don't trust him, then you openly muse about using his natural abilities to harm Beast Boy?" He laughed, rapidly changing the subject as he felt her glare settle on him. "Anyway, far as I know, humans can produce a number of chemicals that could be harmful to other creatures. Hell, we're lucky that Star isn't highly allergic to BB's tofu-gas!"

Raven scrunched her nose in distaste. "Ni-ice." She looked back at the training room, feeling another spike of fear before wind blasted through the room, shredding a brick Robin had thrown to dust. "He's practiced his powers."

"He _did_ say his people natively have powers," Cyborg pointed out, walking up to stare out of the window. He folded his arms, staring with an impassive face as Azeal fell clumsily beneath another airborne brick. "Plus, look at him; he's about the age of a teenage human. You're saying that most people our age wouldn't try goofing off with their powers? Especially if they knew those powers were illegal, so to speak."

Raven shook her head. "It's... more than that. I don't know how to explain it," she admitted, pressing a hand to her forehead. "His powers work off emotions, I can sense that much. Every time he summons wind – don't laugh," she instructed as she saw the humour pass through Cyborg's face, "he seems to have a large spike of fear. Anger seems to fuel the fire magic. He's controlling it well, _too_ well. My powers are similar, and yet I can shatter all the windows in the tower with a single loose emotion."

Cyborg grunted, acknowledging her words. "You gotta remember though; he hasn't had the same upbringing as you. I know I can't claim to be an expert on either of your pasts, but think about it. You've admitted you were trained from an early age to control your emotions, and press them down to stop your powers from acting out. As much as we know about him though, he's lived on a world full of empaths. If everyone could sense your emotions, you'd learn to hide them. Maybe be having his powers controlled by emotions, he learnt to better hide what he's feeling, and learn that way?"

"I don't buy it," Raven said, closing her eyes in stubbornness.

"Can't say I know for sure either," Cyborg agreed. "Can't say I know what I'm talking about either. But have you heard the way he speaks? It's all 'logically this' or following through completely basic logic to every sorta situation. He's managing to talk like that all the time, and he does a good job at hiding what he's feeling. He's admitted to us that he's learnt to fake empathy by judging from body language, maybe he's learnt to hide his emotions from that, and then learnt to still feel, but with control."

Raven snorted, glancing up towards him. "You're really backing the 'hiding emotions', aren't you?"

Cyborg grinned, shrugging once more. "Makes sense to me!" His face dropped of all humour as he watched through the windows, noticing Azeal managing to actually trip over his shoelaces. Even that wasn't enough to make him laugh as he considered his next words. "Look, Raven, I get that you don't trust him. Hell, after what Terra did to us, I'm sure even _Star's_ going to take a little while to trust him."

"A week at most," Raven drawled.

"Maybe," Cyborg agreed, offering a brief grin. "But look, we all know you don't trust him. Hell, we all know you don't _like_ him. But if you're gonna do it around him, make sure you're not letting him get any clues."

Her eyes narrowed as if he'd given her a horrible insult. "I'm the most guarded here. It took you all over a _year_ to be able to tell the _basics_ of what I was feeling."

"Yeah, and that's cos we've grown up without psychics," he countered, dowsing her anger immediately. "He's grown up on a _world_ full of them, he can read people's emotions just from people's actions. Hell, he can even do it byheaving someone _describe_ emotions, or even when people a speaking another language! He pegged that Mas was upset about having to train without Menos when Bumblebee gave a status report over the phone!" He threw his arms into the air, shaking his head in awe. "I mean, the dudes speak _Spanish!_ That much they don't even speak a word of English! And yet, Azeal managed to figure out what was wrong with him after a few minutes! I thought the little guys only had two settings; fast and slow!"

Raven smiled, feeling a small laugh pass her. "Preferable to Beast Boy's idiot and brain dead modes."

"You've never lived with them." Cyborg laughed. "Look Raven, people are always different. Star's powers work from emotions, and she's the sorta gal that wears her heart on her sleeve." He turned away, tapping against a small chart placed in the room with them. "Robin's put you down to train the guy in his magic; why don't you use that time to talk to him? You haven't exactly said much to him, save for scaring him senseless with the banana."

She scowled, remembering the incident fully well. "Fine," she agreed, reluctantly.

"Good." He nodded, turning to leave the room. "If he does turn out to be a bad guy, we've made sure we're prepared."

Raven laughed scornfully. "Look how well we were prepared last time."

"We can only learn from our failures," he told her, dropping all contempt from her posture. "No matter what, we can't predict the future. We're stronger because of what Terra did to us, regardless of how weak she made us feel. Remember that Raven," he advised, leaving her alone in the emptiness of the room.

They _were_ stronger than before, she realised. Terra's plan to destroy them had only united them against one common goal. Sure, she'd managed to tear a hole deep within all of them, but time had managed to heal that wound.

Regardless, she made a promise to herself as she watched Azeal continue to flail like a fish out of water in attempt to escape Robin's attacks. Her trust would take a lot, and a long time for him to earn. Her friendship, longer still. No matter what her team mates thought, it wasn't that she didn't like him, she just didn't trust him. She'd treated them all with the same indifference before, and would continue to treat him just the same.

If he was worthy of her trust and friendship, he'd manage to withstand it and prove her wrong.

If he was truly out to destroy them, then Raven would make sure she'd make an example out of him, all to protect her friends.

* * *

"I am afraid I do not understand this game," Starfire admitted as she stared at the large screen before her. Displayed were many various people who seemed to be formed from blocks, as well as the many strange animals also made from blocks, spitting out square shaped green blasts of energy. "It seems to be rather backwards in optical display."

Beast Boy nodded, not even hearing her as he continued to focus on the game. His tongue poked from his mouth in concentration, wholly glued to the screen. "It's a classic Star," he mentioned as he mashed the controller once more. "It's the seventh in the 'Epic Quest' series, and it's the best one! It was first released way over ten years ago, and still the people make _millions_ out of it!" He drifted away, thinking of the many things he could do if he ever had that sort of money. Doubtless he could buy himself the best bachelor pad around, complete with screaming fangirls, all swooning over his top of the range moped.

Starfire tilted her head sideways, curious as to the names and numbers displayed on screen. No matter how much she squinted, she could still not make sense of it. To her, the most enjoyable game she had found was the 'Major Vehicle Theft', where they controlled the computerised human as he stole cars and murdered innocents. While she could never stand for someone doing that to another in reality, she strangely found it most entertaining to partake in the brutal fantasy.

Beast Boy also cursed the fact that she held the best score for the game between them all. It was quite discontenting to think about, considering she had first attempted to play by using the controller with her toes.

"God damn it!"

Cyborg's curse echoed throughout all of the common room, causing both occupants to near enough jump from their skin. Glancing somewhat nervously over the sofa, Beast Boy found an irate Cyborg looming over them both, near enough breathing smoke from his nostrils.

"I'll give y'all one chance," he said, gaze focused solely on the changeling before him. "Did you put itching powder into my mechanics?"

Beast Boy looked completely lost. "Dude, why would I try that? Can your robot parts actually become itchy?" He remained quiet for a moment, studying Cyborg's face. As anger faded into apology, his own face lit up in childish glee. "Robots get itchy? Oh, this is going to be so awesome!"

"No it's not," Cyborg growled, threateningly. "Given the error readings I'm getting, this must be something mechanical related."

Starfire tapped a finger against her chin. "Could it be something the new Hive Five have accomplished? Their new leader was able to change many aspects of chemical natures, perhaps she has managed to rust some of your mechanics from the inside?"

"Everything in me is completely rust-proof," Cyborg explained. "But thanks anyway Star. It's possible but-" he suddenly froze up, staring at them both as if someone had hit a 'stop' switch.

"Dude?" Beast Boy leapt to his feet, waving a hand before his friend's face. "Everything okay?"

Motors begun audibly running as Cyborg straightened again. "I am sorry. I must go and polish the T-car," he said in complete monotone.

"That was most strange," Starfire surmised. "It is unlike Cyborg to speak so soullessly with his words. He always speaks with much enthusiasm about the T-car."

Beast Boy shook his head, dismissing her worries. "Nah, that's just Cy. Everytime his batteries are running low, he reverts back to the grumpy beast we just saw." He laughed and pulled a face, a mocking picture that looked like it belonged in a low budget remake of Frankenstein. "He'll be back to being regular ol' Cy by tomorrow."

Starfire looked back in worry, not completely convinced. She was about to say more when Silkie made himself known, happily slithering along the back of the sofa she sat on. As always, her attention became completely wrapped around her pet as Beast Boy's returned to his game, and both of them forgot about the concerns they had with Cyborg.

* * *

Shimmer leant across the desk, modesty a loss to her as her cleavage near enough oozed from her top, distracting the nearby Gizmo, who was struggling to keep his face on the screen before him.

"How's the activation going?" she purred, crawling ever closer to him.

"W-well," he gulped, pulling at the neck of his unitard. "We've managed to hijack the crud-muncher's circuitry. All his basic motor functions and thoughts are completely under my- I mean _our _control."

"Brilliant," the girl said, turning over on the desk to lie on her back. "Now, be a dear and activate it fully? We want exactly what we're after now."

Gizmo nodded, nervous sweat beading on his forehead. He wasn't sure what was scarier; the angry Shimmer, or the flirtatious Shimmer. Either way, he had to focus on his goal. Just a few more commands, and the crud-bucket was as good as his.

Who said evil never prospered?

* * *

Raven scowled, focusing on her inner mantra as she stood with the annoyance that plagued her. For once, it wasn't Beast Boy. Instead the creature that poked more and more on her barely contained sense of sanity was the alien Azeal. He knew what he was doing; that much was obvious. But it was the fact that he didn't understand even the _basics_ of magic that irked her. Once she herself had learnt the basics, she gained better control, though had decided not to use it, for she loathed the hunger for power it left her with. Here he was, with more control than she had managed then, though he _was_ still occasionally having the odd outburst of power.

Which was why she needed to dispose of her currently singed and burnt clothes.

"Magic is warping the very of fabric of reality to your will," she instructed, taking a step closer towards him. She felt a spike of fear and curiosity, but not a trace of malice or the like. By all parts, Azeal simply seemed to be learning from her, unthinking of anything else.

But given his conceptions of emotions, she doubted that highly. He could be hiding anything, and she would be none the wiser.

In truth, it scared her.

"If you don't concentrate for long enough, you risk losing control and destroying everything around you," she stated plainly, watching the reaction in his eyes. Surprise, fear, a hint of exhilaration, and then acceptance. No malice at all. "You have control over basic elemental magic, though can't move past either fire or wind. Focus. Close your eyes and draw upon the feeling of power you feel within. It's like the rhythm of your heart, concentrate on it and draw forth from the power."

Azeal stared at her for a moment. "Logically, if magic can destroy reality, it would be best to not use it at all?"

Raven smirked at his words. "Somewhat true, but not wholly. You need the beginnings of mastery over it to ensure you don't completely destroy everything with a moment's thought. You've managed to set fire to multiple things in here – _myself included – _and blow things about with the wind, all through slight slips of concentration. I don't like using magic, but I still practice my control of it. Every slip in thought I have can make the walls bleed, or even cause someone's body to twist inside out." She smiled inwardly as she took note of his somewhat sickened expression. At least in teaching him, she could test to see what he was truly made of. If he was potentially off-put by everything slightly gory, perhaps he wouldn't betray them. Or perhaps another would in his place, while he was the inside man. She couldn't be sure of anything.

She held out a hand, pointing towards him accusingly. "You are much the same. You have even less control over your pool of magic than I do; your thoughts can cause any amount of danger with the slightest lapse in concentration." The ground itself suddenly warped into black tentacles, gripping and slashing at any semblance of life they could find. Azeal yelped and jumped backwards, looking up enough to see Raven's eyes glowing white behind the black of the new floor. The magic faded from her grasp and the floor returned to normal, looking good as new. "I did that with the slightest thought," she said, stepping lightly over the newly laid floor. "You must learn the limits of your power, and then maintain constant control."

Her words held heavy meaning towards Azeal. He'd always felt an alien pressure building near his heart, something which flared every so often. He'd held it back by sheer force of will, but there had been occasions where he'd felt heat or cold flood from it. He was now beginning to understand the meaning of it, as well as the damage it could cause. Even if he didn't wish to use it, he would have to, at least to learn to control it.

"I understand." He nodded resolutely, gripping his hands by his side. "What do I need to do."

She nodded herself. "Close your eyes and focus on the power you feel within. Draw on it, and let the magic take shape. When I tell you to stop, stop."

He nodded, screwing his eyes shut and focusing on the strange pressure within. His face became taut with concentration, sweat beaded down his face and his knuckles clenched tighter as he focused.

Raven felt the subtle changes in the magic's flow around her before she saw them. Visible winds began circling Azeal, whipping wildly and threatening to suck everything in. Then, they simply vanished, replaced with a fiery image Raven was certain she'd seen in her nightmares. It was hell... Trigon's domain... she could feel her breath short, panic flaring through her. Logic strained at her, forcing her to remain calm. It was simply fire, fire burnt all, which was all she'd ever seen. It was simply that, there was nothing else about it.

The fires died without a moment's notice, bringing calm back to the room, and to Raven. She let out a breath, stopping as she felt the magic strain around her. It was as if something was pressing against an invisible barrier, not managing to press deep enough to force by it. She could see Azeal physically struggling against the invisible barrier, trying to further his limits. She'd seen it herself when she scanned him; he wasn't able to reach his full potential. It was like he was swimming whilst tied to a taught rope; he could only make it so far before something stopped him from progressing.

"Stop," she commanded, feeling the magic break instantly at her voice.

Azeal looked sheepishly at her. "Did I fail?"

She shook her head. "There's no failing in this. You confirmed what I thought; you cannot access your full magical potential."

He looked at her as if she were speaking another language. "Is that good or bad?"

Raven stopped before she spoke, considering it herself. She truly had no idea, if she was honest with herself. She was teaching, sure, but it was almost the equivalent of a school teacher teaching at a university; she was out of her depth. Regardless, she was the only person on the team who knew anything about magic, and so she found herself teacher.

"It's not bad," she decided. "It just means that you may have a surge of power at a later date. It just means we'll have to train you in understanding powers you don't yet have." She hoped she was making the right choice in this. While she didn't trust him fully, she didn't want to make a mistake training him. If he did turn out to be traitor, and his powers turned on him, it would be of no concern to her. But they were equally as likely to take many innocents at the same time, due to his lack of control. As much as she didn't enjoy having to use her own magic, it was the only way she could protect innocents.

"We'll start you on basic exercises," she said, floating over to access a control panel in the corner of the room. "It's going to be more in-depth than what Robin has been working you with, but it's also going to be easier. Unlike physical abilities, exceeding your limitations in magical matters does not simply leave you drained of energy. Instead, you are likely to fall into a coma, or perhaps even lose control completely." She smirked sardonically within the recess of her hood. "Of all the powers you could have gained, you've managed to have access to the potentially most dangerous one."

He looked towards her, conviction in his eyes. "I'll make sure I'm able to control them the best I can. I came to this planet to help protect it; I won't endanger the people by lack of control of my own abilities."

She raised a brow at him, silently respecting his conviction to the lie, or to his actual words. Either way, she couldn't be sure at the moment in time. She turned to face the control panel once more before it fizzled with electricity and shorted out, just in time for the lights above them to blow.

"Raven?" Azeal asked within the darkness. "This isn't part of your training, is it?"

She scowled, silently cursing whoever had caused this all. "I wish it was," she growled, noting the turrets and mechanical blocks begin to emerge from the walls. Of course everything would have to be set onto the most dangerous setting, wouldn't it? Someone had hacked into the tower's controls, and she'd be damned if she let them get away with it.

Of course, that was providing _she_ managed to get out of the room alive.

* * *

Robin was certain something had gone wrong. He wasn't watching in on the training room, trusting Raven to be able to take care of herself, but had made sure there were monitors set in place, just in case. However, everything electrical in the tower suddenly died all at once, with power all being re-routed to one particular location.

He stole a deep breath, racing down the multiple hallways to his destination. There was only one source of power he could think of within the garage, and he truly doubted enough power could be needed to make the T-Car run.

That was, until, he saw the new and improved T-Car. His eyes were wide behind his mask, and for a moment, he forgot himself.

Starfire was flying around, shrieking war cries as she pummelled it relentlessly with her starbolts. Beast Boy had dove onto the machination as a hippo, only to be swatted aside like a fly, careening into a nearby wall.

"Dude!" he exclaimed, seeing Robin in the doorway. "Any idea where Cy's got to? His car's gone all 'Transformer' on us!"

Robin couldn't have put it better himself. The car had somehow become a giant robot, which had obviously smashed through the ceiling above. The blue mechanics of the car were evident on its chest, and the headlights now functioned as eyes on its head. It screeched and launched blasts not dissimilar to Cyborg's sonic blasts at them, making them all leap to the side instinctively.

Cyborg's whereabouts could wait. Robin had to deal with this threat in the mean time.

* * *

Groaning, the sole figure on the beach managed to get to his feet, spitting out a mouthful of sand in distaste. Seaweed clung to his shiny head and shoulders, and sand was in places he didn't even realise sand could get to.

And the mind-numbing pain wasn't doing him any favours, either.

Cyborg groaned, pressing a hand to his temples. The itching had gone... but he couldn't remember how he'd gotten on the beach, or anything from the past few hours! He remembered talking to Beast Boy and Starfire, an error message... and then nothing.

He groaned once more, lifting an arm to check his location, and the current time. It wouldn't have been the first time he'd woken up in a strange place, after all.

His eyes widened, taking in the details. He was still in Jump, but he'd somehow managed to miss an entire day. Numerous alarms were registered, all calls from distress from his friends. Just how much had he missed?

He scowled, opening the newest message left for him. What he saw however, made his soul shiver as the words processed through his brain. A simple message left from his friends, a simple message that rocked him to his very core.

"_How could you betray us?"_


	9. AntiVirus: System Restored

_Disclaimer_

**Teen Titans** is a registered trademark of DC Comics and Cartoon Network Inc. All trademarked characters, locations, themes and ideas are used without permission in a work of fan-created fiction. The following has been done without profit for purely entertainment purposes. All original concepts, characters, themes and ideas within are the copyrighted property of the author, and are not to be reproduced without his prior consent.

* * *

_A power feared by all_

_A fate destined for all_

_A force that balanced life itself_

_For once, she found she wasn't the cause of doom_

_And that made it all the more worrying_

_

* * *

_"Dear, sweet, _defenceless_, Titans," Shimmer cooed as she walked before them all, strutting as if she owned the very tower she stood in.

Given that the four remaining Titans and Azeal were currently held to the wall of the tower's main room by solid diasteel, she near enough did. No matter how hard they struggled, the bonds keeping them against the wall remained. Every attack they tried to make was quickly met by punishment from one of the Hive Five stood menacingly around them all.

"How unprepared you all were," she continued, pressing hands seductively to her waist. "If only you'd known that we'd managed to get Cyborg on our side." She smirked sinisterly, stepping forwards to trail a finger along Robin's chin. The very act drew a scowl from the boy, and emerald fury to blaze in Starfire's eyes. It was as if the Tamaranean had grown horns and fangs for teeth as she glared at Shimmer, trying with all her might to focus the energy for her eye beams.

However, Gizmo's small power nullifiers round their legs made sure all their powers were unavailable to their call. In essence, Shimmer was right. They were defenceless, and Cyborg had betrayed them, sold them out and run away, unable to face the destruction he had caused.

"Oh dear," she sighed theatrically, moving back to face them all again. "Dear sweet Jinx never managed this, did she? It just goes to show she was never cut out to be in the Hive Five; good doesn't always triumph over bad, you see."

Everything had fallen into place so perfectly. Gizmo had completely taken over Cyborg, retuning all his emotions and processes at a whim. With that, they'd manage to manipulate the very tower itself, capturing the Titans and the random red headed kid they had with them. The success of the plan meant that everyone had fallen into line in her team, now following her lead without question. She was the leader of the Hive Five now, she had the Titans trapped and at her mercy, and the bucket of bolts known as Cyborg scrapped and shipped off to another part of the country.

Nothing could go wrong now.

Raven's dark chuckle caught her attention. Shimmer waltzed over to the girl with undeserved arrogance and sneered down her nose at her. "What's so funny magi-slut? You finally managed to break out a personality other than 'boring bitch'?"

Raven's eyes flashed darkly, even as her team mates remained completely oblivious to her sudden laughter. She smiled eerily, long enough to send a chill down Shimmer's spine.

"Bad guys always get what's coming to them."

Shimmer's eyes widened a fraction at Raven's words. She sobered and scowled, lashing out with a hand to slap the girl across the face. But her hand simply passed _through_ her, dispelling the image before her. One by one, the Titans simply _vanished_ before her eyes, leaving the Hive Five in a room full with only themselves.

"Uh, what just happened?" See-More asked, scratching at the back of his head.

Shimmer's head whipped around the room, explanations and command lost to her. She growled and leapt at the wall where the Titans were meant to be, only to discover the small parting gift they'd left them.

Her eyes widened, noting the descending numbers rolling across the screen.

_3..._

Her eyes widened comically from her skull.

_2..._

Screams erupted from her throat, and she threw the object as far as she could.

_1..._

The object bounced harmlessly off the windows, rolling back towards them all.

_**BOOM!**_

* * *

_**Teen Titans**_

**_Corruption's End_**

**AntiVirus; System Restored  
**

* * *

**_Ten hours earlier..._**

"Damn, damn, _damn!_"

Cyborg cursed continually, constantly checking his computer built into his arm. That message just couldn't be right! There had to be some other sort of explanation for it all! There was no way they could believe he was a traitor! He couldn't even remember anything about it himself... just what exactly had happened?

... and just where was he?

He scanned the immediate area, wondering just exactly how he'd managed to get here, and why everyone else thought he was a traitor. With no T-Car, his communicator blocked, and no vehicle in sight, he was pretty much doomed to walk the journey to wherever.

There was no one in sight, the sun was setting in the far distance, and life seemed so far away from where he was. With nothing else left to do, he quickly accessed his systems, running a full triangulation of his location.

"Brilliant," he groaned, kicking a rock across the sandy floor. He was on the far end of town, past the financial district and the apartment complexes that were always rife with crime. No wonder there was no one to be found; there wasn't a soul that wanted to traverse through the rougher parts of town once the sun had gone down.

He would have to walk through there, though. And of course, he was nothing more than a six foot avatar of heroic deeds... meaning every criminal he walked past would be wanting to have a go at him.

The trip back was going to be fun.

With little other choice in the matter, Cyborg began to walk back towards the tower. He quickly ran all the checks he could, attempting to see whether his processors had stored the information his brain had forgotten. But there was nothing. Every time he reached the times needed, it was like walking into a wall of static. Someone had completely wiped his systems, making sure he couldn't remember anything about it.

He just had to have been hacked, _somehow!_ There wasn't a way in hell he'd _ever_ betray his friends... and he thought they knew that. If they truly believed he'd betrayed them, someone must have hijacked him and used him perfectly as a sleeper agent.

"This is bull!" he screamed, lashing out again at the sandy floor. Sand and dust flied everywhere, covering his vision for a moment. Slowly it blew away on the wind, leaving him covered in small pieces of grit, as well as considerably angrier. He shuddered and reached onto his back, pulling off a piece of seaweed that was beginning to slip within his mechanics. Eyes widening, he realised that the horrible itch attacking him was gone, and that somehow, it must have had something to do with it all.

Gizmo had shot him with some sort of electric blast. After that, they'd retreated not even a few minutes later. It _had _to be related.

"You damned little pipsqueak!" Cyborg roared, proclaiming his revenge to the stars above. He was going to get back the little insect, rescue his friends and prove his innocence, all in one fell swoop.

* * *

The sun had descended fully, leaving the entire of Jump's worse neighbourhoods cloaked within the frankly pathetic lighting systems. All the streetlights flicked on an off, and every street corner was full of small groups of people cloaking themselves with baggy clothes and hoods, openly smoking drugs and selling others on.

Despite Cyborg's mechanical prosthetics and weaponry, he still felt nervous. No doubt he could defend himself here; but he had no idea how many people were actually hidden in the shadows. If it did resort to combat, he had to still be wary; doubtless everyone here was carrying at least a knife, if not a gun. While he'd been lucky so far in that no one had ever damaged what little remained of his organic body, he doubted he'd hold such luck here.

With those thoughts in mind, he kept to the shadows, cloaking himself as best he could. He quickly ad libbed a new design into his systems, making his torch light _repel_ light, rather than give it out. With the small design improvement, he had at least a metre-wide circle of darkness surrounding him at all times. Thankfully, it also cloaked his shining red eye and blue mechanics.

He crept through the alleyways, aiming to get home as quickly as possible. He could get the Titans to follow him the next day and patrol this area, or even attempt to get the police to have an increased presence. Now, however, he needed to save his friends. He had the horrible feeling that if Gizmo _was_ behind his supposed betrayal, the Hive Five were most likely attacking his friends.

He rounded a corner, barely concealing a gasp as he saw the scene before him.

Two small groups of _kids_ – they were barely older than eleven each – facing each other, all with guns pointed and ready to fire. It was like a sick, twisted stand off from the old western films, except the good and bad guys were replaced with eleven year old junkies, fighting over their dealing and shooting up grounds.

He needed to stop them all, and _now_. He glanced around quickly, evaluating the situation, and found himself getting an eerie feeling of déjà vu. His mechanical eye began to flicker, and he was sure he was going to be sick as a wave of memories assaulted him.

* * *

"_Raven? This isn't part of your training, is it?"_

_Azeal looked extremely frightened within the sudden darkness of the room. It wasn't pitch black, but it was enough that they'd barely be able to see the weaponry pouring out of the walls and ceiling, all with one purpose;_

_To destroy them._

"_I wish it was," the girl replied, considerably more nervous than Cyborg had ever seen her. She breathed deeply, attempting to calm herself, and whispered a few ancient words as her eyes shone a brilliant white. "Call it leaping before you look. Survive this, and we'll know the limits to push you to."_

_All at once, the guns opened fired. Black ether sprung up instantly, shielding them both within its transparent darkness. Every volley of rounds was met by a pained gasp by Raven, and more and more she sunk to the floor, combating the pain she felt assaulting her being._

"_It's live rounds!" she gasped in panic. She never knew the tower would ever use such; even the giant metal blocks designed to crush them would stop as soon as they felt the smallest trace of hair or skin beneath them. Everything in the tower was designed to test them, yet still keep them safe._

"_They're alive?" Azeal whispered in confusion. Fire sprang to his hands, orange flames licking his arms almost seductively. And yet, he didn't seem to feel the heat as he squinted through the shield. "Could we not reason with them?"_

_Raven was obviously torn between laughing and letting her shield drop around him. "Live as in harmful!" she grunted, feeling more impacts on her shield. "I can't hold on much longer!" she warned, dropping to a knee._

_Azeal cast her a worried glance, taking a step towards her. The fire in his hands remained as winds whipped around the room, slicing indiscriminately at anything they could find. Raven hissed as one sliced her cheek and lifted her gaze, glaring daggers at the alien._

"_Sorry!" he yelped, taking a breath to compose himself. The winds slowly flickered to a small breeze, pacing round the room at a leisurely pace. "I can't get rid of it," he admitted, flinching at the sound of another round of gunfire. He took another breath, cold blue eyes scanning the room. "When I say so, drop certain areas of your shield for a moment. Can you do that and raise them back up again?"_

_She nodded, biting her lip as sweat trickled down her brow._

"_Okay," he nodded, steeling himself. "Right side!"_

_An explosion rocketed the far wall, sending smouldering pieces of metal and wire showering the nearby area. Fire burnt over the remains, even as another explosion tore through the left side of the far wall. In a matter of moments, explosions had torn through the whole room, leaving most objects in nothing more than burning wrecks of their former selves. They floated along softly in the wind, dragging along the floor._

_Black ether crept outwards, surrounding pieces of sharp metal in the soulless glow. With a whisper of words they flew into the remaining machinery, slicing through their mechanics and putting them out of commission._

_The wind slowly died down, leaving the room in an eerie calm aftermath. The room was cast in a small orange glow in different areas, all lit by the tiny fires still blazing throughout the room._

"_Stay alert," Raven whispered, warningly. "Nothing's ever that simple." She glanced around the room, eyes alert for any trouble. She barely heard the rush of air compacting above her head before something suddenly knocked her sideways, throwing her heavily to the floor. She caught herself and rolled into a crouch, catching sight of a mechanical block slamming into the ground where she just was._

_She glanced upwards, noting the glow appearing from Azeal's eyes. Where hers glowed white, Starfire's green, she could see that his shone blue, though white lines crackled throughout, almost like lightning. She wasn't sure whether it meant he was exerting more control, or simply more power, but regardless, she was silently thankful for the save._

_Though he could have done it with less impact. She rubbed her side subtly, feeling a bruise developing already._

_Raven gasped, hearing a familiar weapon sound. Her eyes shot around to the source, in time to see a sudden blast of blue sound slam into Azeal's side. The alien shot backwards into the far wall, murmuring indecipherable words before he slumped to his side._

"_What?" she grunted, unable to form anything more intelligent at the moment. Sure, she'd mentioned her open distrust of the alien, but she would have never attacked him like that, not without reason. Even his action of attacking her with the very wind itself was to save her from the sudden metal block._

"_Cyborg!" she hissed into the dim-lit room, seeing his blue mechanics advancing towards her. "What's going on here?" she growled, coating her hands in black ether. She obviously was clueless to everything going on around her, but wasn't taking any risks. "Why's this room acting like this? Why did you attack Azeal?" She frowned behind her words, obviously thinking through the many possibilities. Maybe Cyborg believed Azeal was behind it all, but she knew. She was with Azeal when it happened, she'd sensed the sudden fear explode from him at the abrupt change in training systems. He was innocent._

"_The tower is under new control," Cyborg replied emotionlessly. Raven's eyes widened and she took a step back, not believing what she was seeing or hearing. "The Titans are obsolete. Anything that is obsolete must be replaced and destroyed. Raven, _you_ are obsolete."_

_Her eyes widened as a gasp escaped her throat. Black ether crawled around her hands, willing, telling her to attack her friend. But she hesitated, and that was enough. Sonic waves hit her body full force, making her crumple on the floor in sheer _agony_. Her stomach churned within her body, her eardrums burst and bled, and she felt for sure her eyes were about to burst too. The pain increased, and she couldn't help but scream as the torture continued. Mercifully, it stopped, dropping her into the recesses of unconsciousness._

"_Target two neutralised," Cyborg relayed. "Encountered unexpected target, also neutralised. Proceeding to neutralise targets one, three and five."_

_He walked away into the darkest part of the room, leaving the two to the mercy of the strange shadows advancing towards them. There were cries of jubilation and success behind him, but none of them mattered to Cyborg. Only the objective was important._

* * *

Cyborg gasped, reality once again hitting him. He staggered on his feet, pressing hands to either side of his head. Had that really all happened? It was like a fog had been suddenly lifted in his mind, and he could perfectly recall everything, every small detail about Raven and Azeal's attack. He was there the whole time, watching, waiting in the shadows to strike.

He shuddered. No wonder why they thought he was a traitor.

His attention was quickly drawn back as he heard shouts from before him, remembering the situation he'd come across. Clearing his throat, Cyborg watched with grim humour as the group of a dozen kids jumped into the air, eyes wide and darting over the shadows.

"I wouldn't be doin' that if I were y'all," he said, purposely lowering his voice. Smiling to himself, Cyborg thought he sounded intimidating enough to stop them all from their attack on each other.

In a way, he was right. Instead, every kid suddenly opened fire on the shadows, causing the Titan to yelp and dive to the side, cursing as live ammunition soared over his head. What sort of state of affairs was it when kids not even in their teenage years knew how to fire a gun, and would happily shoot one without a care in the world?

He growled, flicking his light-absorber off. Standing before them all, the kids suddenly stopped firing as they looked up the figure staring scornfully at them all.

"Cy-cyborg?" one whispered in palpable fear.

The Titan nodded grimly, arms folded in displeasure before them all. "That's right y'all. Now what the _hell_ do you think you're doing goin' around shootin' things? You realise how _dangerous_ those things are? What would your mothers say if they saw you going around tryin' to kill other people?"

"My momma would be proud," a little kid retorted. He lifted his nose in distaste, giving Cyborg a clear view of his face. He couldn't have been older than ten, his front teeth were obviously missing, and the rest were still his milk teeth. His skin looked shadowed by the hood over his head, yet the blue eyes showed him to be Caucasian. Crime didn't matter by age, or by race, as here he was, going around shooting people. It wasn't right.

"She'd by me another gun, just 'cause she'd be that proud," he continued, grin furthering across his face. "She's the one that always tells me the world's better off without these darkies."

Cyborg's human eye nearly quadrupled in size. The kids were fighting, shooting, _killing_ each other, over their races? It was sick. What sort of parent would honestly raise their kid like that?

"So you're going to shoot me then too?" Cyborg asked, stepping towards him.

"B-but," the kid stammered, looking lost for words. "You're a _robot_."

"I'm also black," the Titan countered. "And I'm not going to stand by here and let some little punk-ass kids that should be tucked up in bed argue and _shoot_ each other, all because of the colours of their skin! You guys-" he pointed to the group he assumed were following the little racist white kid, "-have to learn skin colour don't matter. Look at me; I'm black. Hell my team's got people that are orange, white, grey and green! You and your momma think Jump's better off without _us_?" He glowered at the dumbstruck kid, whirling round to the other group. "And you lot; don't encourage them by aiming to fight back. I know you might think you look like cowards for turning away, but it takes a better man to turn his back on a fight. You're insulted he called you darkies? You're not going to help matters by fighting back."

He sighed, shaking his head heavily as he felt his words hit home with the little kids. "Tell y'all what; give me all the guns you've got on you, go home and go to bed. I'll be back down here a week today, and we'll all play a big game of soccer, a'ight?" He shook his head once more. "And if _anyone_ causes any trouble between now and then, or makes any racist wisecracks, you'll have me to deal with." He mechanised his arm into a cannon for emphasis, pointing it slowly at them all. In truth, he felt bad for intimidating and scaring all of these kids, but he knew it was most likely the only way to get them to understand. His hand whipped back into normality, and he pressed both hands out before him, "Now, we got a deal?"

There were a few slow murmurs in the crowds before the group on his left walked up and handed their guns over to Cyborg. The man smiled approvingly, turning to look at the group led by the little loudmouth kid. Abashed, he rubbed the back of his head, turning over his own weapon to the Titan. His group followed suit, and soon enough Cyborg held a dozen firearms in his hands.

"Good," he said, and crushed the guns together in his hands. The kids all stared at him with wide, fearful and awed eyes, and he gave them all a smile and a wink. "Now go on y'all, scatter to bed! I'll meet y'all at the park here, midday a week today. Any trouble, and there's me to answer to, got it?"

There were a number of nods, as well as a few whispers of agreement and thanks before the kids all turned away, scattering in opposite directions.

Sighing heavily, Cyborg turned around and dropped the crushed guns into a nearby dustbin. _Stupid kids_, he cursed, walking away from the alleyway and further towards the tower. At least, if nothing else, this sudden turn of events might have helped him save the lives of a few kids running in gangs.

He supposed that maybe there was a silver lining in every situation. Of course, the best on in this would be that his friends were safe and sound, understanding completely that he'd never even entertained the thought of ever betraying them.

* * *

Cyborg wasn't sure how long he'd been running for, but he was certain it had been a while. Now he could see the beginnings of dawn appearing on the far horizon, and knew that daybreak was near. If it was night when he started out, it meant he'd been running for the majority of the night – or only the early morning, depending on when he'd actually woken up. He wasn't trusting his computerised clock at the moment, as the damn thing had given the same time for the past three miles. He knew he was a fast runner, but not _that_

fast!

He knew he was close now. He recognised the pizza parlour, even in the dark, and the nearby comic book store where they'd always find Beast Boy drooling over the X-Men comics. Cyborg nearly took the piss for weeks on end when he discovered that, only to discover that they weren't actually all men and that in fact, the women all seemed to have the same hourglass, svelte figure.

The comic book store was strange, Cyborg realised. Alongside comics about fictional characters and beings was merchandise about their very own heroes, from the likes of Superman and Batman to The Flash and the Green Lantern. There was a remarkable amount of merchandise of the Titans themselves though, positioned in battle poses, heroic poses, and even little toys they could move about. He never said anything about it, but he always found it quite funny that Beast Boy's toy sales outweighed Robin's. Either Beast Boy himself was buying all his figurines – which Cyborg wouldn't put past him – or there were mass amounts of little kids, all dreaming to become different animals on a whim. He supposed that to a child, Beast Boy's powers were infinitely preferable to Robin's, if only because they couldn't ever get them. If they ever began training as hard as the Boy Wonder himself, Cyborg felt that maybe they could have a regular Robin army running around.

He shuddered, pushing away the thought. Robin was one of his best friends, and no offence to him, but Cyborg couldn't bear the thought of more than one of him. They'd either hunt all the criminals down on the planet and introduce a new strict regime of laws and rules on the world, or end up having a large massive brawl about who deserved to be the true Robin.

He smirked inwardly, hearing his feet continue to pound on the pavement. _That_ was a funny thought. Maybe he could even sell tickets.

He rounded a corner, stopping suddenly to avoid crashing into a large cut out advertising a movie. Feet reaching a halt, he realised the advertisement for the Transformers movie, distantly registering that the film had been released well over a year now, and here they were still showing it.

He caught sight of the blue on the cardboard figure for just a moment, and was hit by a wave of nausea. Stepping back to keep his balance, Cyborg pressed a hand to his head, grunting in pain as he felt a rush of memories again, pouring forth from their artificial bonds.

* * *

"_His car's gone all 'Transformer' on us!"_

_Beast Boy's analogy was perfect. Even as he shrieked and leapt to the side, becoming a dove to soar above the blast of sonic from the robot, he couldn't reach heights enough to combat the creature. It had shattered through the ceiling of solid concrete above, which was a considerable ten feet above the ground._

_The T-Car robot shrieked inhumanely, picking up a slab of concrete from the floor and chucking it forwards. Starfire shrieked and dove underneath, soaring into the creature with a vicious uppercut as retribution. She twirled away through the air long enough for Robin to leap up and strike the creature's arms with his staff, grunting with exertion as he put his whole weight into every blow._

_Beast Boy leapt at the robot, morphing into a Tyrannosaurus Rex mid-leap. With a primal roar he bore his weight down on the creature, biting and clawing as savagely as he could. The robot's chest opened up suddenly, launching a volley of missiles into the screeching dinosaur, making its roars become those of pain rather than anger._

_The once-T-Car swiped at the air, catching Starfire like a gnat on its hand. It slammed her into a far wall and sprouted lasers from its knee, peppering Robin with small welts and burns, knocking him back down to the floor._

_Starfire shrieked with rage, charging forth with speed and power only the warriors that were her race could possess. Her lips let out an animalistic cry as she flew threw one of the robot's hulking arms, twisting in her flight enough to wrench the appendage free from the body. She snarled and rotated in mid air, throwing the mass of metal as if it were no more than a golf ball. It thundered into the robot, knocking it backwards through the opposite wall._

_Beast Boy leapt up with an elfish grin, skin bubbling as he abruptly fell into the shape of a mongoose. He chattered and sniffed the air as he skulked forwards, running to the robot's very systems. Emerging not moments later with a mouth full of wires and mechanical components, he chattered in victory as a small explosive disc hammered into the robot's chest. It stuck to it like glue, beeped once, twice, three times in rapid succession. The robot lifted an arm to try to pry it off, instead becoming fuelled with thousands of volts of electricity. _

_There was a small hum of motors dying as the robot slunk back to the floor, growling mechanically once more before it fell over completely, landing on the concrete floor with a heavy thud._

_Robin stood in palpable unease as Beast Boy gloated, and Starfire floated happily over the remains of the robot. His eyes widened a fraction of an inch moments before he leapt into the air, flipping backwards over a beam of energy that would have sliced through his chest._

_Beast Boy gasped, Starfire squeaked something in horror. Robin himself frowned, feeling the shadow looming over him. He knew instantly who it was; his detective-honed mind able to process the facts faster than most. _

"_Cyborg," he grunted, standing up slowly to face him. Masked eyes met soulless eyes; one mechanical, one natural. "What's going on here?" he asked, giving his friend the benefit of doubt. He knew he wasn't wrong, but it didn't stop him hoping he was._

"_The Titans are obsolete," Cyborg replied, sounding every bit as robotic as he had once before. "Obsolete files must be destroyed and replaced."_

"_Cy!" Beast Boy protested. There was a flash of light as sonic waves hit the wall behind Beast Boy, the boy himself buzzing away from the wreckage as a household fly. "What gives?" he wailed, ballooning into elfin form a few metres away._

"_Order of elimination," Cyborg grunted in mechanical monotone. "Take out smallest threat first, allowing maximum time to combat higher level threats."_

_There was a sudden sound of electricity as Robin descended on Cyborg, having leapt at him in silent rage. Cyborg however, seemed to be ready, as there was abruptly a field of electricity surrounding them both, plying Robin with hundreds of volts of electricity._

"_Robin!" Starfire cried, flying towards him in due haste. _

_Her distraction gave Cyborg an emotionless smirk as he advanced on Beast Boy. "Calculating probability of animal form," he grunted as he walked forth. "Kangaroo," he stated, catching the animal's muscular tail in his molybdenum grip. Kanga-Beast Boy struggled for a moment before chemical foam poured from Cyborg's arm, coating him fully in sticky pink goop. He shrieked, becoming human again, only to feel the pressure around him increase tenfold. It felt like he was being constricted, about to be eaten by some horrible snake from beyond the trees. He cried out, feeling the last of his breath leave his lungs until the sweet mercy of unconsciousness claimed him._

_Cyborg turned around, advancing on the still-smoking Robin and Starfire. The girl looked up, anger and confliction burning in her emerald eyes._

"_I do not wish to hurt you friend," she stated, holding a glowing hand before her._

"_I don't care," Cyborg retorted. He grabbed her hand and twisted, catching her completely off guard. She 'eep'ed as she was pulled off her centre of gravity and flung away, impacting her skull on the far wall opposite. She screamed as harsh waves of sonic energy assaulted her, tuned up to further pierce her Tamaranean physiology._

_Cyborg grunted, turning away from the girl. Two down, one to go._

_He advanced as Robin flipped to his feet gracefully, lashing out with full speed and strength. Unflinching, Cyborg walked forwards, taking each hit as if it were no more than a small insect bite. His hand shot out a grabbed Robin by the top of his head, squeezing hard as he felt the boy underneath struggle._

"_Target one neutralised," he stated, and flooded his leader and best friend's brain with as much electricity as he could._

* * *

"No..." Cyborg whispered in abject horror. The memories that flooded back into him just couldn't be real! He'd never attack his friends like that! Surely they had to know he wasn't the course of their betrayal!

He knew now he _needed_ to get back to the tower. Without sparing the obnoxious advertising poster a moment's thought he charged forth, knocking it aside in his haste to get back to the tower.

His friends needed him, and he'd be damned if he was going to let them down.

* * *

The first sight any of them met was the cold, dark brown eyes of Shimmer. She snarled contemptuously at them all, unable to hide the laughter in her voice as she spoke.

"Well well Titans," she walked before them all, "you didn't see this coming, did you?" She reached out and waved her fingers in the air, seemingly changing the molecules by hand. Air became solid gold in the shape of a throne, and she sat before them all regally, eyeing them like toys won at a fair. "Didn't think we'd manage to get your precious Cyborg on side, did you?"

"You lie!" Starfire shrieked, struggling against the diasteel that held them all to the wall. "Cyborg is our _friend_! He would never betray us to a vile, wretched _glarvag_ such as yourself!"

See-More scratched at a cheek, completely lost. "Yo... what's a 'glarvag'?"

Starfire huffed, turning her head sharp enough to send orange hair cascading down her shoulder's front. "It is a term used among my people for one who spreads unscrupulous lies in order to severe bonds between friends and family."

Beside her, Beast Boy moaned in disbelief. "How comes we're always ending up in situations like this? Why can't we have a normal day where the biggest bad we have to contend with is that there's nothing on t.v.?"

"Life's not perfect," Raven shot back. "If it was, teenage villains would know something about modesty."

"Says the girl walking around in a glorified bathing suit," Shimmer retorted, crossing her legs with an air of arrogance. "You're the one with a team mate who wears nothing more than a boob-tube and a mini skirt."

Behind her, Gizmo cackled as he hacked into the Titan's computer mainframe. "Hey guys, you wouldn't believe the stuff these crudmunchers have got on everyone! Apparently that crud-munching snot eating slut-bag Jinx is in Dark City at the moment. Whad'ya say after we deal with these losers we go teach her the meaning of revenge, New Hive Five style?"

"We can get there now," Billy proclaimed, rubbing his hands together gleefully, "and make her feel more sore than a rider going bareback on a bucking bronto!"

Shimmer rolled her eyes at the man, pushing back the pleading thought within her to simply turn his whole body into rock. If nothing else, at least he would be _gaining_ some intelligence.

"I think we should give them all a work out," Mammoth suggested, folding his arms and snorting derisively. "Teach 'em why they don't mess with us. Maybe we can beat a few names and places outta them? Or get them to get us discount at all the food stores?"

Shimmer sighed, sparing a glance at her brother. "We're _criminals_, remember? We don't _buy_ food, we _steal_ it." She shook her head and moved from the impromptu chair, letting it melt back to empty air behind her. She waltzed along before the Titans, pressing a hand gently over each of their chins as she walked past. She took in their heartbeats, their rate of breath, the violation they felt in the simple touch. She stopped before the one who piqued her interest most, not recognising his features. "You're new," she whispered seductively, pressing forth to Azeal. "The Titans recruiting more losers?" She stopped, watching as he regarded her with hollow interest. "What's your deal then? Silence powers or something?"

He smiled devilishly, catching her off guard for a moment. "Logically, it is unwise to press yourself so close to an enemy."

Her eyes widened a fraction of an inch, and she only just registered Robin's cry of, "Azeal no!" before she leapt back. Her eyes caught sight of the new boy's clenched fists, and quickly her mind opened up and went to work on the chemicals she could feel pulsating within.

"I don't recognise that," she said, focusing her gaze more. "But it looks like... drugs?" her voice piqued in interest, head cocking to the side. "You were hoping to give me an overdose?" She walked forwards, confidence in her gait. "So the Titans have recruited someone who doesn't hesitate to kill, hm?" She dragged a finger along his chin, breathing seductively on his lips. "So what do you say, 'Azeal'?" She licked her lips, smirking at her brother's sneer of disgust behind her. "How about you join our team? We're the real winners here. You can leave these losers behind in the dust."

Azeal cocked his head to the side, considering her. "It depends. What would you do if I told you the world was doomed?"

She laughed instantly, unable to help herself. Catching sight of his serious expression, her laugh drowned into a small, throaty chuckle. "Then we'd make sure we owned it until it went boom, and make sure we had the only escape shuttle off it."

He smiled grimly. "Then no," he said, and smashed his skull into hers.

She screamed in blind pain, feeling her nose pump hot blood relentlessly down her face. She heard her brother cry out her name in shock and anger, and a grunt of pain she hoped was from the strange red head being beaten by Mammoth. She took a breath, forcing herself to blink past the pain and tears in her eyes. Collecting herself, she warped the blood on her face to water, leaving her unstained. "Wrong move," she growled, snapping her fingers above her head. She heard him gasp as his bones became mercury, and she sneered victoriously as he thrashed under the pain, feeling the metallic poison coursing through him.

"Let him go!" Robin roared, struggling against his own bonds. "He's not a Titan!"

"Too bad," See-More supplied for Shimmer. "Gotta give out a message, you know? Anyone who messes with the Hive is taught the lesson, no matter their friends."

"Damn straight," Shimmer replied, cocking her head in eerie calm as she forced Azeal's bones to kill him from the inside out. Her eyes widened in a horrific fashion and she stared, focusing all the attention she could. It took all her will to stop his organs from collapsing on each other, supported now only by a sea of mercury. She doubted the Titans would appreciate the beauty and effort in her work though.

A horrible klaxon suddenly rang through the entire tower, shocking her so much it caused her attention to disappear, returning her victim's bones to normal. She whirled round, words ready on her tongue to scream at Gizmo.

"**Security alert!" **

The mechanical female voice representing Cyborg's sophisticated security software sounded throughout the tower's speakers. Red lights flashed throughout, and Shimmer felt her rage intensify, aiming to burn holes in whoever was breaking in.** "Intruder alert detected in section twenty three of the tower."**

"I got 'em," See-More said, switching visors as quickly as he could. X-ray vision granting him a full scope, he noticed movement several floors below. "Looks like they're sneaking round the tower." He looked back up, switching back to his normal vision. "Reckon it's Cyborg having another change of heart?"

Shimmer hissed through her teeth. Of course, one little oversight would lead to all of this, wouldn't it?

"Let's go deal with him," she growled, nodding her advance. "We'll make sure there's nothing left of him to ever come back again."

* * *

Cyborg breathed heavily, knowing his robot wouldn't distract them for long. He was amazed that there was still every part left from his robot duplicate he'd constructed when he infiltrated the Hive. It only took ten minutes for him to whip it up again and give it a few basic commands.

Though he still thought the way it randomly would shout 'booyah' was rather creepy.

Regardless, he had to press on with his objective. Hands and feet both sprouting suction cups, he began the tedious climb all the way up the tower. Inwardly, he cursed the oversight within his systems, and decided he was going to design a jetpack or something. It was annoying enough that he often had to rely on Beast Boy or Starfire to fly along with him in their grip, but now he had to climb forty-three floors with _suction cups!_ It was time for a upgrade.

He cursed again and again, feeling the weight of the climb bore down on him. After what seemed an eternity he managed to reach the living room of the Titans, and caught sight of his friends strapped to the wall. He scowled and flicked a finger, producing an acetylene torch from within. The window was made quick work of, and he silently advanced towards his friends.

"Hey Cy!" Beast Boy greeted happily. "Finally come round to kick us while we're down?" he sniped, scowling at his robotic friend. "Or couldn't you face us until your new slutty girl worked us over? She already tried to kill Azeal!"

Cyborg's eyes shot over to the alien, who was breathing heavily, head hung in exhaustion. The Titan's sensors should high levels of poisoning within the alien's systems, as well as an increased heartbeat and blood pressure. Heavy sweat poured from his head and body, and his shirt was soaked through. Saliva dripped excessively from his mouth, and his cheeks tinged bright red even as skin seemed to peel from his very flesh.

"We need down to the treatment room!" Cyborg was saying before he realised. "Now! He's got extremely high levels of mercury poisoning!"

"Duh!" the changeling retorted, rolling his eyes derisively. "That's what happens when that psycho-slut turns your bones to it!"

"_Beast boy!" _Robin hissed, glaring over at him. "Cyborg's innocent."

"Wah?" he turned round, gobsmacked and not believing his leader's words. "If he's innocent, why'd you let me say all that?"

"Just in case they're listening," the Boy Wonder retorted in a whisper. "Just like why we sent that message to him. It was obvious that Cyborg had been taken over somehow, but I didn't know who by, or when they were going to strike. This was the only way we could find out, but..." he looked over at Azeal, his eyes dropping in shame. "But I didn't realise how bad it would end up."

"Alright y'all, we've got to act quick," Cyborg said, opening a scanner on his arm. "Hold still for a moment, I'm gonna check over a few things." A soft light scanned over them all, taking in their images. "Alright, I've got that sorted, we're gonna create an illusion that'll fool them all. Now-" he pressed another button on his arm, emitting a horrible frequency that hit their ears relentlessly. The sound of metal snapping open hit them all, and four of them quickly found their powers returning to their beings.

"Alright, Star, I'll help you get outta yours first, then we'll help the others," Cyborg instructed, gripping hold of the shackles keeping her to the wall. "We'll get Raven to 'port us all down to the medbay, and then we'll leave them a little surprise and strike when they're not expecting it. Now, here's what we're gonna do..."

* * *

Shimmer smiled to herself, feeling content with a job well done. They'd discovered Cyborg and reduced him to nothing more than a few small nuts and bolts. Now he was in boxes being flown out everywhere over Jump, and hopefully never to recover again.

She walked back into the room with arrogance earned from Cyborg's destruction, noting Azeal's state of poisoning with a gloating expression. She'd leave him like that now, letting him suffer more than she'd first intended.

"Dear, sweet, _defenceless_, Titans," Shimmer cooed, "how unprepared you all were." She pressed her hands seductively to her waist. "If only you'd known that we'd managed to get Cyborg on our side." She smirked sinisterly, stepping forwards to trail a finger along Robin's chin. Starfire glowered at her in fury, wanting to burn holes in her brain.

"Oh dear," the villain sighed theatrically, moving back to face them all again. "Dear sweet Jinx never managed this, did she? It just goes to show she was never cut out to be in the Hive Five; good doesn't always triumph over bad, you see."

Raven chuckled darkly, drawing Shimmer back to reality. "Bad guys always get what's coming to them."

Shimmer's eyes widened a fraction at Raven's words. She sobered and scowled, lashing out with a hand to slap the girl across the face. But her hand simply passed _through_ her, dispelling the image before her. One by one, the Titans simply _vanished_ before her eyes, leaving the Hive Five in a room full with only themselves.

"Uh, what just happened?" See-More asked, scratching at the back of his head.

Everything that was going so well had faded before her eyes. She suddenly found herself holding a ticking clock, obviously a bomb left behind by the cruel Titans. She threw it away, shrieking as it rebounded back into the room.

It had to be a joke, just a horrible joke. She reassured herself to no end, watching the countdown with utmost fear. Only when it hit zero did she realise just _maybe_ it wasn't a joke.

_**BOOM!**_

* * *

The explosion rocked the depths of the tower, all the way down to the medbay. Currently the five Titans stood in pregnant silence, watching as Raven and Cyborg both hooked Azeal up to a number of machines.

"Good thing the machine can create any substance we need," Cyborg said as he hooked up an I.V. drip. In truth, he was only speaking to break the silence, knowing his friends were wondering whether or not he was going to betray them again. "Alright y'all, he's hooked up and ready. Gonna take at least the rest of today to purge most of it out of his systems."

Raven nodded, walking from behind him in silent wondering. "You should have realised something was wrong when you were itchy," she scolded him, fixing him with a level glare. She sighed and looked away, focusing her stare on Robin instead. "Back to the main room?"

He nodded. "Starfire, you stay here and look after Azeal." He looked away, motioning for Raven to teleport them all. Words chanted under her breath as the very shadows themselves crept around them all, surrounding them entirely and filling them all with a horrible feeling of cold and dread.

And just like that, it stopped. They were in the main room, witnessing the destruction that had taken place. Chemical foam not dissimilar to that Cyborg had used on Beast Boy had exploded all around the room, coating the entire group of villains in its sticky goop.

"You're not gonna be able to transmute your way out of this," Cyborg gloated, pressing a foot down on the ball that contained Shimmer. "It's designed with Gizmo's little power bracelets. Not only does it trap you, it's stopping you use your powers too."

"_You ugly, froth eating bucket of bolts!"_ Gizmo shrieked, his legs running comically in the air from his foam prison. "_Ripping off my designs and using them all! You no good, snot shovelling, goo-!" _he choked, finding black coated foam covering his mouth.

"Shut up," Raven growled, stepping towards him menacingly. She glared once more, soul self spreading out beneath her and snaking towards the remaining members of the Hive Five.

"Let's clean up," Robin suggested, pulling a boot from the floor, struggling against the foam stuck to his shoes.

Beast Boy morphed into a gorilla to carry the Hive Five with ease, following Raven as they deposited them within their holding cells, completely covered in the horrible foam. Robin meanwhile stood watching out of the window in silence, calmly collecting himself, making Cyborg all the more nervous.

Cyborg was about to speak himself when Robin pre-empted him.

"Why didn't you tell us something was wrong?"

Cyborg blinked, not fully understanding his question. It hit him a moment later, his human eye widening in comprehension. "The itchiness, right? I dunno," he admitted, lifting an arm to stare at the mechanical shine that bounced off. "I guess I was just hoping it meant I was becoming human again."

Robin rounded on him, remaining as composed as ever. "Do you not want to be a Titan? Does being half machine bother you that much?"

Cyborg shook his head, folding his arms as he looked out the window. "It's not that. It's just... sometimes, I can't help but want to be normal again. There's so much I miss from being human, you know? Even going to the bathroom," he laughed tensely under Robin's continual silence. "It's just that it's something I can't ever get again. You're telling me that you've never wanted something you can't ever have? Even the slightest feeling of hope can bowl me over completely." He sighed, placing his hands out before him. "I'm still not sure if I like the way I am now. It's just... who I am now. I can't change it, no matter how I try."

Robin shook his head, pressing a hand onto his friend's shoulder. "But you're changing what you're designed for. With that amount of weaponry, you can't deny that someone would have wanted to use you for some sort of malicious reason. Even Brother Blood thought he could use your schematics to take control. You're changing what you can, and doing the best you can under every situation. It's all everyone ever does." He smirked suddenly, stepping beside him. "You think everyone's actually happy with what and who they are? I can't tell you the amount of times I've wished that I had powers like you guys. No matter what, you're always going to have them. You could take a year out and do nothing but sit down and waste the days away, and you'd still have powers at the end of the year. If I stop training, I'll lose almost every ability I've got. I wouldn't be very good fighting crime with a pot belly, would I?"

Cyborg snorted at the mental image. "I guess we're all a little pissed with who we are sometimes, huh?" He smiled, turned around and groaned at the mess that he would no doubt have to clean. "So how'd you figure out I wasn't a spy then Spikey?"

"There was nothing to say you were," he replied, folding his arms in a smug way. Cyborg resisted the urge to roll his eye, knowing that Robin was moving into one of his teaching modes. "No matter how careful you could be, there'd always be clues. Terra was brilliant at what she did, yet when we look back, we can see all the cracks. With you, there was nothing. No one's perfect Cyborg, not even I could manage to do that without leaving a clue, _somewhere_. Plus-" he patted Cyborg's mechanical shoulders, "-when was the last time you ever used the word 'obsolete'?"

The mechanical Titan snorted. "He actually thought I speak like a robot? Damn, kids got less brains than I thought. Oh!" He jumped up, rounding on Robin with a grin. "That reminds me, we really need to start making our presence known in Lower Jump. I came through there on the way back, just about stopped two little gangs of ten year olds from shooting each other into Swiss cheese."

Robin went to reply, snapping his mouth shut when the doors opened with a metallic hiss. A smirk grew on his face, and he found himself genuinely holding back laughter.

"Not. One. Word," Raven growled. Stuck to her hood was a large lump of pink foam, in which there was a green hummingbird that could only be Beast Boy. It twittered and struggled against the bonds, further irking Raven. "Medbay, now," she demanded. "If you don't get him off me, so help me I'm going to place this cloak in the wash with him still on it."

* * *

Cyborg relaxed, feeling a immense amount of pressure taken from his being. Behind him Raven looked around, holding up a pair of tongs with a small computer chip in their grip.

"This caused all that?" she asked, staring at the computer part. "I thought Gizmo would need a lot more than one simple chip."

Starfire was by her side instantly. "Ooh, what flavour is it? I do not believe I have seen the most wonderful tasting potato chip in such a unique design before," she said, attempting to reach past Raven for the chip rather like a child struggling for cookies from his parent.

"Not that kind of chip Star," Cyborg related for her. "This is the sort of one that's used in computer systems."

She frowned, her face a picture of naivety and innocence. "Your language is most confusing. Why would the same word describe nourishment, as well as a small piece of computer hardware?"

Beast Boy shrugged. "Take it up with the guy who invented the language."

"Do you have _any_ idea who that is?" Raven retorted, fixing him with an even look.

He laughed sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "Uh... Mr. English?"

She sighed, looking away to focus on Azeal. He was recovering well – either due to the amounts of treatment drug in his system, or merely due to his alien physiology. Over him stood Robin, whose face was twisted into a heavy set frown.

"We don't use lethal strikes," he admonished Azeal, who was fighting to sit up in the bed.

The alien frowned, considering his words. "Logically, it would make sense. If they are dealt with in such a fashion, surely they cannot cause such devastation again?"

Robin shook his head stubbornly. "We're _Titans_. We don't kill, we uphold the law."

"You're vigilantes," Azeal countered, shocking Robin into place. "You break the law you claim to uphold every time you attack villains and cause damage to the town." He stopped, pressing a hand to his temple in pain. "Regardless, what if you were presented with a situation where killing your foe is the only option? Sometimes you must commit small evils to prevent larger ones."

Robin frowned once more. "If it comes to that, then we make the decision as a team. And yes, we're vigilantes. But we set ourselves aside by not killing the people we help arrest. If we did, we'd be no better than them."

The alien nodded, considering his words. He winced, shuddering as he felt more poison purged from his system. "Your world has strange ideals," he decided, clenching a fist in pain. "But, if I stay here, I will try my best to uphold them," he promised.

Cyborg watched the two, his mind distant with the memories of his unwilling betrayal. How was it that his friends could forgive him so quickly, and pretend to forget everything that had happened? He knew they lived in such a fast paced world, where one wrong attack could spell the end of their careers. His sonic cannon had been amped up to levels he didn't know he could reach, and he saw that Raven had considerable internal bruising from his attack.

And yet, she said nothing about it.

He shook his head to clear it, focusing on more prominent thoughts. The Hive Five had been shipped off to prison, and would most likely break out within the month. Doubtless someone would probably put Shimmer in a room without power blockers, and she would simply melt the walls to walk out.

He sighed, placing his hands behind his head as Beast Boy and Raven argued about something, whilst Starfire attempted to stop Robin wandering off to repair and update the tower. Sometimes, it was the simple things in life that made people realise everything about themselves. He might not have been happy with the way he looked, but he was more than happy with the life he'd chosen, and especially the friends he'd made.

At the end of the day, that was all that mattered.


	10. Epic Quest Seven

_**Teen Titans**_

**_Corruption's End_**

**Epic Quest Seven

* * *

**

_Sometimes the truth was obvious_

_Other times, a lie was palpable_

_Occasionally, things could take you by surprise_

_This was just one of those times_

_'He'... was a 'she'

* * *

_

Beast Boy crept through the halls of the tower, eager to get his latest fix. Despite everything he told himself, he was weak. He couldn't go a day without his precious fix, the calm and joy it brought him leaving a strain and hole within his very being.

Smiling euphorically, he pressed the small glowing switch, basking in the unnatural glow the television screen brought. There was a hum as a fan whirred into life, and the videogame displayed on screen, illuminating the dark living room in its unnatural glow.

"It's... so beautiful," Beast Boy whispered in awed appreciation, his eyes glued firmly to the screen. By muscle memory alone his fingers navigated the controller, selecting his precious save file that told him he'd spent well over forty hours of his life attempting to complete the game.

Epic Quest Seven truly was epic in the amount there was to do. Even forty hours in, Beast Boy found the tasks needing doing were still in high double digits, well over fifty, if he had to guess. His characters had yet to reach the maximum levels or statistics, and there was all the magic and skills left to master. Not to mention the bosses he had left to beat.

There was _a tonne_ of stuff left for him to complete! The only time he could truly play it was in the dead of night, just like now, where he was sure only Robin was awake, and maybe Raven sat in her room meditating. His simple fix would cost him a good few hours of sleep each night, but he had found that by sleeping as a giraffe, he only needed two hours sleep each night. It was a win-win situation, and he had yet to see any negatives from his late-night video games fix. In fact, the only point that could be seen as bad in any way was that to accommodate his giraffe size, he found himself sleeping in the high-ceilinged living room.

But he knew it was worth it, if only to complete the game.

Strange as it may have seemed to everyone who didn't know him fully, Beast Boy had absorbed qualities of the intelligent people around him. From his own parents to Mento on the Doom Patrol, even to his time in the Titans with all his team mates, Beast Boy was always surrounded by geniuses. While they had more obvious quirks relating to it, such as in Robin's need to control and understand, to Cyborg's need to present and display, Beast Boy found he too had a form of obsessive compulsive disorder. Unlike the norm of having to be ultra-clean, or ultra-organised – two things Beast Boy could easily concede he was not – he found himself with a need to _complete_. Everything that needed him to complete it, be it a puzzle or a video game, needed to be completed to a hundred percent perfection. Anything less and it would drive him crazy.

Thus he spent most nights attempting to perfect the game.

It wasn't his favourite game in the series, in fact, contrary to the masses, he preferred Epic Quest Ten over Seven. However, he found that once he'd started playing _anything_, even if it were the most painstakingly boring game ever to surface, he _had_ to complete it. His need to complete overran most over desires. He'd seen Robin come in a few times before, and each time the leader had silently observed him playing the game. Usually Robin would command people to go to bed after a certain time, yet with Beast Boy, he seemed to just _know_. Likely he understood Beast Boy's predicament, and refused to say anything on the matter, aware of the hypocrisy any such statement would be made in.

"Come on," he grunted, maniacally pressing commands. He needed to beat this group of foes! Once they were dealt with, he could access the stat boost they were guarding! It would be one down, several hundred more to go, but it was still one step closer. He mashed the commands furiously, urging his characters to attack past their programmed restraints. "Just one more attack..."

The screen went black.

Beast Boy shrieked, placing his hands on his head. "No!" he wailed, darting towards the console in due haste. He knelt before it pleadingly, clasping his hands together and praying towards the screen and whatever higher power may be listening. "Don't die on me like this! I'm only a few paces away from a save point! You can't do this!"

"_Oh, but I can."_

Beast Boy shrieked again, darting under the couch as a turtle. His reptilian head poking from his shell, he stared at the television's display of ominous static. He was going crazy, right? There was no way he'd heard _any_ speech whatsoever. It must have been the continual nights with only a few hours sleep. Giraffes may have been able to cope with two hour's sleep, but humans couldn't. It was just exhaustion.

"_This is my world now."_

The voice hummed all around the changeling, and he resisted the urge to shriek again. Instead he willed himself to move closer, pressing his elfin face to the screen. "You're in my imagination," he told it, pressing a finger demandingly on the screen. "You're in my head, and you're going to display my game again right now!"

The voice cackled once more, _"As you wish."_ There was a sharp buzzing sound threatening to overwhelm his senses, dropping him to his elbows and knees as he fought the noise. It burnt all around him, threatening to engulf his very thoughts themselves -

- Until the world around him vanished in a sea of static.

* * *

Slowly his senses came back to him. There was a distant hum of an open landscape; birds, bees and animals he couldn't discern cried in the far-away distance. He smelt and tasted fresh soil and leapt to his feet, gagging and drawing pinched fingers across his tongue, praying in vain to get rid of the taste. Slowly his eyes opened, and he hissed at the sudden pressure of the sun above them. The landscape around them was barren, though he could see in the distance a large city that seemed to be buried within eternal shadow.

"Dark City?" Beast Boy whispered to himself, pressing himself to his feet. Surely he wasn't anywhere near Titans North. For one main thing; they were surrounded by cities on each side, with only a small village to the north. He was somewhere different, somewhere alien, yet at the same time, strangely familiar. He blinked around his surroundings, fidgeting at alien weight on his back. Only when his fingers gripped the strange material did his eyes widen. "Oh, dude, this is _so awesome!_"

A red headband adorned his head, coloured the same as the tattered cloak hanging from his shoulders, secured with a number of buckles. He wore a multitude of black clothes, all covered with similar buckles, and large pointed golden boots covered his legs and shins. His right arm was covered in a gauntlet of similar design, and his right hand was covered by leather glove. With wide eyes he reached into the holster on his right leg and pulled out the weapon within. It was a revolver with three long barrels coated silver with tribal patterns covering the barrels.

"It's... it's beautiful," Beast Boy whispered with tearful eyes. He cradled the gun closely to his chest, breathing deeply in the magnificence of the situation. His brain whirred and came to only one logical conclusion; he had fallen asleep and was now in the world of Epic Quest Seven. However, every thought pertaining to such a situation crashed and burnt when his ears picked up a familiar voice.

"Please tell me this is a joke."

"Raven?" Beast Boy squawked, leaping into the air and twisting full circle. He noticed the way his cape flowed around him and couldn't help but grow a goofy grin at the sight. No wonder Raven and Robin both wore one; they were _awesome!_

"Gods," Raven replied, sounding every bit more irked. "_Please_ tell me this is just a nightmare." She found herself staring at Beast Boy, feeling extremely uncomfortable with her sudden change in wardrobe. Her cloak and black leotard were gone, in favour of a green sleeveless turtleneck that barely reached her navel and tan shorts that were unbuttoned and barely covered half of her thighs. A pauldron covered her left shoulder, dropping into a long beige gauntlet that was strapped round her chest and back, and mesh covered part of her right arm and left leg. Small brown fingerless gloves covered her hands, and she wore a large pair of beige sneakers and white legwarmers.

"Evidentially whoever designed these clothes thinks highly of women," she quipped, trying in vain to pull down the top in an attempt to cover herself.

Beast Boy, meanwhile, said nothing. He was speechless at the amount of ivory skin on display and only caught himself before he began to drool. "I think someone's up to something here," he said, collecting himself.

Raven glared coolly at him. "You think?" She scowled, clenching her fists and shuddering. For some reason she felt remarkably... _hollow_. Her soul-self refused to come to her, no matter how much she chanted, and the normal cacophony of emotion that was Beast Boy was silent and missing. It was strange, that when presented with that which she'd always wished for, she wanted it back where it belonged.

"I don't think our powers are going to work here," Beast Boy whispered, holstering his gun. "Someone's set us up to be the characters from Epic Quest Seven, we've probably only got their abilities and weapons."

Raven stared at him for a moment. "You have _got_ to be kidding me," she groaned, pulling a hand down her face. No powers, no flight, no magic... she scowled, mourning the loss of them all, then did a double take. "'Weapons'?" she parroted.

"Yeah!" He nodded enthusiastically, pulling forth his gun as proof. "Each character has their own weapon! Yours should be a giant shuriken!"

She glared flatly at the aforementioned weapon on the floor by her side. "You mean _this_?" she uttered, kicking the steel for good measure. "How am I supposed to use that? It's too big to throw, and I'll have to chase after if I actually manage to throw it."

Beast Boy shook his head. "If your character can throw the weapon in the game, I think you'll be able to. And it works like a boomerang; once you throw it, it's going to come back."

She looked at it again and lifted an eyebrow. "... because that's not dangerous at all." She sighed, shook her head and looked up again, catching sight of Robin suddenly _appearing_ before them both. She took his change in clothes in for a moment before she quipped, "Overcompensating?"

Robin was now in a sleeveless indigo top and like coloured pants, with large brown boots over his feet. A pauldron covered his left shoulder, and he wore gauntlets on both arms. However, most prominent of all was the large sword sheathed on his back which seemed to be tiring him just to carry.

"Where are we?" he asked instantly. A bemused expression covered his features as he saw Beast Boy and Raven both, and he inwardly hid the smirk he felt growing. "Good to see I'm not the only one with a costume change."

"Brilliant, isn't it?" Raven remarked, rolling her eyes in unease. "So what now? Wait around for the rest of our team to show up?"

Robin frowned. "What makes you think they'll show up here?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Beast Boy exclaimed. "We're in a _game_ universe! There's always a party of at least six people getting to kick butt! In the one we're in, there's at least eight, so that means we're going to have our whole team here sooner or later!"

Robin stared at him for a moment. "... right." He shook his head, turning to leave. "In the mean time, I'll start to figure out where we are."

He stepped forwards, leaping backwards as a flash of light appeared before him. Balance lost, the Titan found himself falling with additional weight and landed gracelessly on the floor. Cursing under his breath, he glared up at the source of light, only to see it merged into a familiar figure. "... Cyborg?"

Cyborg's usual mechanical plating remained, though over the top were many superfluous articles of clothing. A dirty brown vest clung to his mechanical frame, as well as dark green pants and heavy brown boots. Dogtags hung from his neck, and his right arm had mechamorphed into a small machine gun.

"Huh?" he grunted intelligently as he noticed his surroundings. Taking them in, as well as the current state of his friends, a wide grin spread across his face. "We're in Epic Quest Seven? Alright!" he cheered, pumping his fist into the air. However, his eye widened upon seeing the new design and he cursed and screamed for the next moment, attempting to change it back to normal. It was, however, unsuccessful. "Aw man!" he complained, kicking at the floor. "Why have I gotta be stereotyped like this? I could have been anyone, but _nooo;_ I'm the black guy with a gun for a hand!"

"At least your character seems to have modesty," Raven groaned. Catching sight of her, Cyborg gawped for a moment before trying to pry his vest off and offer it to her. However, the clothing seemed to stay stuck to his metallic skin, no matter how much he pulled at it.

"Dude, law of the videogame!" Beast Boy chided him, slapping him on a shoulder. "Don't you remember? Game characters _never_ change their clothes!"

Raven went to complain, though the harsh light that appeared before them snapped her mouth shut instantly. In its place was Starfire, who blinked in wondering at her new surroundings. "Soo, is every woman here allergic to clothes?" she deadpanned.

Starfire's long hair trailed down to her waist, split into a dolphin-tail split at the end. She wore only a white tank top that ended before her stomach, and a black miniskirt with black suspenders attached to her belt. Beaten brown boots covered her feet, though her arms and fists were covered in fighting gloves, and large metal pads protected her elbows.

She blinked, taking in her surroundings. "Friends, please, is it the day of Halloween again? I would have been most appreciative if I were consulted before being placed into a costume."

"It's not Halloween Star," Robin grunted, pressing himself off the ground and moving closer to her. "We're in some sort of weird dimension Cyborg and Beast Boy seem to think is a representation of a video game."

Starfire nodded, understanding his words slowly. She spun around, taking in the sights before she let out an excited squeal. "Oh! Is this the game you were attempting to beat the other day Beast Boy?" She twirled towards him, unknowingly hitting Robin with her long hair.

"Something like it," he replied, bunching fists within his cape. "This is so _cool!_ This game is super-awesome, and now we're getting to experience it first hand!" He jumped up in happiness, shrieking in alarm when he noticed a large, red, lion-like creature sat at his feet.

Its tail swished calmly as they all jumped back and treated it as a threat, though itself jumped backwards at the sudden threat. "Where are we?" it asked in a distinctly familiar voice.

Robin blinked behind his mask, inching forwards disbelievingly. "Azeal?"

"I think so," the lion answered. He growled and scratched himself like a dog before shaking himself thoroughly. "I was in my room when a harsh light and sound of static swept me up. Logically, whoever is behind that placed us here. Although-" he frowned – or at least they thought he did, as his current facial expressions were now strangely lion-like, "I do not see why I am now a strange creature, and you are all still human form." He grunted, sniffed at the air then licked his shoulder experimentally. "Though strangely, I seem to be cured from the mercury poisoning completely."

Robin frowned once more. "We need to figure out who's behind this. Once we do that, we can figure out how we get out of here. Now – whoa!"

Out of nowhere a humongous fireball sailed towards them all, detonating with concussive force between them all. With no experience how to handle their new bodies, everyone found themselves flung to the side, coughing in pain at the sudden impact.

And above, the sound of nerdy cackling assaulted their ears.

"Well, well, well Titans. It seems that you're now in my world!"

One by one they looked up, only for their jaws to drop in sheer disbelief. Flying ethereally above them was Control Freak, who was wearing an ill-fitting black coat, with silver pauldrons covering his shoulders. Disturbingly, he had one long, black feathered wing from the right of his back that flapped behind him, keeping him airborne. However the most disturbing was that in his left arm was a long, thin blade that was easily Robin's height that sent chills down all their spines... except for Beast Boy.

"Masamune..." he drooled, literally.

"You've never been able to defeat me in real life," he admitted, grimacing. "But in here, I rule the world!" He cackled maniacally, throwing his arms out to the heavens. "Your fate rests within the video game world Titans, and you shall find yourself doomed beyond all hope! Prepare my arch nemesises... nemesees, nemesii... _rivals!_" He slashed the blade through the air, forcing chilling wind to strike them all. "For this land shall be your grave!"

Azeal coughed, bringing attention to himself. "Why am I here?" he asked, attempting to gesture with a forepaw, instead nearly falling over. "I am not a Titan, and so should not be included in your list of rivals."

Control Freak laughed maniacally. "Because you are nothing more than the Titan's pet! And what better form for a pet than that you currently wear?" His wing beat harder, more frantically in the air, seemingly trying to cope with the villain's weight. Evidentially, it was not designed to keep someone so out of shape in the air. "Regardless," he coughed, gesturing around him. "Enjoy your doom!"

He cackled again and wrapped his wing around himself, disappearing in a flutter of black feathers.

One by one everyone looked between themselves, ignoring his words. "So what do we do now?" Robin asked, admittedly at a loss.

Beast Boy shrugged half-heartedly. "Adjust to our new lives as awesome people?" His question was swiftly answered by Raven's hand connecting with the back of his head. He winced, rubbing the sore spot and conceding the stupidity of his notion.

At a loss of what to do, the Titans found themselves silent for a moment. That was until Starfire broke it all with an awkward question.

"Friends," she began, drawing their attention. Her hands cupped her breasts, and she stared at them in wonder before looking at her friends. "Why have my mammary glands swollen to such ludicrous proportions?"

* * *

It seemed like hours that they'd been out in the plains, having to endure the tireless sun beating down on their bodies. More often than not they'd seen strange creatures wandering around the wilds; Beast Boy had recommended they stay well clear of them for now. He gave the reasons why, but it was so heavily in game-style terms that no one but Cyborg truly understood him.

"Okay," Robin relented, pressing a hand to his mask. Sweat beaded across his forehead, and inwardly he prayed he would be able to be rid of the ridiculous sword taped to his back. It would only ever move when he drew it; their weapons seemed to permanently follow them. Even Raven's shuriken kept magically appearing by her side when she stopped walking, even though she'd left it in ravines, ditches, and even the sea at one point.

"I honestly have no idea what's going on here," he admitted, wearily. "Beast Boy," he called, snapping the changeling to attention. "You know the most about this world we're in, and you managed to beat Control Freak when we were in the television world. Until we get out of here, you're in charge."

"Really?" Lights shone from his eyes like rotating disco balls.

"Really."

"Awesome!" Beast Boy gloated, leaping a foot into the air. "Alright," he began, clearing his throat authoritatively. "Now, I think we should get to know who we are better."

Raven deadpanned. "I've lived with myself for sixteen years. I know who I am."

Beast Boy chuckled, wagging a finger at her. "Not _that_ self; our current selves!" he proclaimed, gesturing down to himself. "I am Vincenzio Valetino, former member of a top-secret mafia organisation, killed and regenerated by a mad scientist who impregnated the one woman I ever loved!" he declared theatrically, whipping his cape around himself as he spoke. He twirled the gun in his hand, miming explosions as he pretended to pull the trigger. "I'm an expert with a handgun, and rarely miss my shots!

"Raven, you are Yuffey Kisaragee, a talented thief and ninja from a humble town of ninjas," he said, spinning round to face her. She sighed, desperately wishing she was a character who favoured modesty. She could have sworn there was a girl in his game that wore a long dress... except it was pink. In retrospect, she'd take her current clothes over _anything_ pink. "You have no bigger motives furthering you than saving your home town from the reign of evil, and making them prosper without external aid!" He grinned, miming throwing movements. "You're an expert with a giant shuriken you can use like a boomerang and a close-range weapon. You can defy gravity by running up walls, and have agility that others envy."

She lifted an eyebrow. "Okay, _maybe_ I might like this character," she conceded. She didn't like the clothes, but she had to admit, running up walls did sound quite cool. It was saying something from a girl who could fly.

Beast Boy continued on regardless. "Robin, you're the hero of the story, a silent, grumpy ex-soldier who's been scientifically abused and injected with magics and serums enough to make you think you are your dead best friend." He grinned, noting the look of bewilderment on his face. "You are Clowd Stryfe, and you wield the iconic Buster sword like Zak before you, who many still believe was your one true love."

Robin did a double take. "I'm sorry, what?" he snapped, blushing beet red.

"That's right!" Cyborg guffawed. "There's a lot of that going round little man. But don't worry, you have two female love interests, and even get to dress up like a pretty girl at one point!"

Shamed fury burnt Robin's cheeks crimson. "I hate this guy," he growled, grinding his teeth together.

"But you can jump to stupid high distances!" Beast Boy protested, "And you're pretty much the best character in terms of stats!"

Robin rubbed the back of his head, feeling somewhat relieved. Being the best out of everyone? He could deal with that.

Heedless, the changeling span round to another ally. "Cyborg!"

"I know who I am Salad Head," the mechanical Titan interrupted him, palm out flat. "Barrett Wallaace, leader of our resistance group, and manic tree-hugging terrorist with a machine gun for a hand." He grinned, spinning the gun on his wrist, careful to not shoot anybody.

"Dude..." Beast Boy moaned, sagging forwards dejectedly. "I'm giving the commentaries here!" He straightened himself back up, leaping to Starfire's side. "Star, you're Teefa Lockheart, Clowd's friend from childhood, and strong-willed woman able to do epic ass-kickery with your mad kung fun skills!" he declared, kicking and punching the air by her side. "You found Clowd after seven years, who thinks he's someone he's not. Because of your love for him, you follow him round the world, making sure he's okay, whilst trying to save the world from the evil doers at the same time."

Starfire grinned, clenching her fists before her face. "I suppose, I shall literally be kicking the butt?" She smiled, twirling in a full circle. "Glorious! I shall endeavour to save this world as much as I attempt to save ours."

"Aaaand, finally-" Beast Boy twisted dramatically, leaping into a crouch by Azeal's side and throwing a hand round his furry head. "We have Crimson XIII, real name Naneki, supposed last of his race. Able to feel and sense the planet better than most, as well as possessing knowledge of human language and a brilliant intelligent mind, you can rip foes apart with your teeth, claws and ample magic at your command."

Azeal considered this for a moment. He snarled, scratching at himself desperately, biting aggressively into his shoulder. "And plagued with fleas, it seems."

"We must travel the land, seeking to destroy the evil corporation Sheenra," Beast Boy declared, pointing them forwards. "They use the planet's natural energy as a fuel source, and are slowly killing the very planet we live on. They break the moral laws, experimenting on people and animal alike, giving way to Control Freak's character; Sefiroth." He shuddered dramatically, gripping close to Starfire, who glanced round apprehensively in confusion. "Engineered from a foetus, he was injected even in the womb with masteria – the world's form of ancient souls allowing the use of magic – to make him the strongest weapon anyone had ever seen. It worked, but backfired dramatically, and now he seeks to destroy the planet completely, merging with its very soul and eradicating the universe!"

Raven blew a strand of hair from her face. "That has to be the longest I've ever heard you speak without sounding remotely unintelligent." She folded her arms on her chest, wanting nothing more than this to be over with. "So how do we escape?"

Beast Boy shrugged. "We beat the game?"

"And how do we do that?" Robin asked, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Simple!" Beast Boy declared. "We go around, beating up smaller monsters until we're strong enough to beat up bigger monsters. We beat up everything we find, until we're skilled and levelled enough to beat Control Freak."

"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard," Raven grunted.

"Hey-" Beast Boy shrugged, "-it sells."

The very ground beneath them began to rumble, and out of nowhere appeared a hulking mechanical beast. Two pointed feet not unlike Beast Boy's shoes kept it upright, and a large metallic grill covered its entire midsection. It seemed to be over ten feet in length, and most startlingly was that the two 'arms' coming from its side ended in large guns that were trained perfectly on all of them.

"Is this one of the bigger or smaller monsters?" Azeal asked, pawing at the dirt to escape.

"It's nothing," Beast Boy assured them. "We're early on in the game, so it's a weak monster. Between the six of us, we can kill it." He grinned, cracking his knuckles together. In one fluid movement he drew his gun, pointed it at the robot and barked, "Titans, go!"

However, nothing went to plan.

Robin drew his sword with unnatural speed, though quickly found himself unable to balance the sudden weight. He tipped forwards, unable to stop himself before they both fell, and he cracked his skull on the flat of the blade, knocking himself out instantly.

Starfire leapt towards the robot with blinding speed and lashed out with a vicious punch. There was a loud _crack_, followed by a pained 'eep' as Starfire managed to do nothing but break her fist. The robot then swatted her aside like a fly.

Azeal roared and charged, only to bounce harmlessly of the creature's metallic body. He whined and hit the floor, his tail crushed under the monster's foot. He yelped and went to bite it, succeeding only in getting a round of gunfire to the face, sending him sprawling yards away.

Raven growled lowly, feeling the shuriken between her fingers. She grunted with effort, throwing the weapon with all her might at the creature. She smirked, noting it severe a number of wires with a shower of sparks before she flipped backwards, avoiding a blast of gunfire. However, her weapon decided to boomerang back, and she screamed as the shuriken came charging towards her. She turned tail and ran, spinning shuriken of doom chasing after her all the way.

Cyborg however, had trouble of his own. "H-h-help m-m-me g-g-guyssss!" he pleaded, gripping onto his mechanical wrist with all his might. The machine gun fired of its own accord, indiscriminately in every direction, forcing the teen to shake and jump around with it, his whole body mercy to the weapon's will.

Beast Boy took a look at them all and sighed, "Noobs." A large shadow fell over him, and he glanced up at the robot hulking over him, steam bellowing out of its grill. The changeling smirked and aimed his gun upwards, firing with deadly force. The bullets hit metal with a loud '_pang!'_ and the machine continued to run for a moment. Then, belatedly, it shut down completely, falling to pieces at either side of the teen.

"Beast Boy; one, badass robot, zero," he gloated, spinning the gun on a finger before he holstered it. All around he scanned, looking for the status of his friends. Everyone but Raven seemed to be present, and everyone but Cyborg seemed to be unconscious, though the mechanical Titan sat down heavily on the grass as his ammunition ran out, rubbing his stomach nauseously.

Suddenly Raven appeared, glaring daggers with a large, spiked shuriken sticking out of her right arm. Black blood randomly spurted from the wound, though the girl pressed on regardless, fixing Beast Boy with her most deadly glare. "Pray we find Control Freak," she growled, wrenching the weapon out with deadly intent.

Beast Boy gulped, feeling a nervous smile grace his face. "Why?"

She waved her weapon in his face. "Because otherwise, I'm going to kill you."

Then she passed out.

The new leader glanced around, feeling the thud as Cyborg fell to the ground, out for the count too. He sighed, rubbing the back of his head wearily. This was going to be a long day...

* * *

Control Freak cackled to himself, watching the Titan's progress on a small screen above him. Another switch of his coveted remote control brought a new scene; a strange screen which looked remarkably like a game's menu screen, complete with portraits of the Titans in place of the original characters.

"What wimps!" he laughed to himself, falling backwards on his chair. "They're all at level one! They're going to take _forever_ to beat me! If they can't beat one simple cutter, they're never going to come anywhere _close_ to me!"

The real world sucked. Nothing ever worked in his favour there. In here however, he had the power of the very planet at his whim. And what sort of villain would he be if he didn't abuse it?

* * *

Beast Boy marched before his friends rather like a troop master. With his hands clasped behind his back, he considered what they should do now.

"Logically, we must become accustomed to our new forms," Azeal stated, growling as he buried his nose in the soil. "Although I do not wish to remain a quadruped, it would seem our only way of knowing what we are capable of is getting used to our situation."

"Brilliant," remarked Raven, rolling her eyes for effect. "While we're at it, shall we just sample the local cuisine and hotels?"

Cyborg grinned behind a hand. "If we check into a hotel, only thing Robin's gonna wanna check are Starfire's suped-up boobs," he whispered to Beast Boy, causing them both to chortle silently, tears springing from their eyes.

"There's not much else we can do now," Robin said, gingerly rubbing a bruise on his forehead. "We can't fight in our current condition, and if Beast Boy's right, and Control Freak is the most powerful creature in this world, we're going to need to know ourselves to defeat him."

Starfire frowned. "Are there not some kind of guide of cheats available here? I have seen Beast Boy often refer to pre-explained paths others have recommended, or using specialist commands that alter and influence things that should not be changed."

Beast Boy sighed, shaking his head despondently. "I don't think we can now Star. We could use them when this was just a game, but this is real now. So... we're just going to have to train ourselves up!" He leapt to his feet, jumping forwards a few steps and pointing down a small hill. "And where better than on the weakest enemies there are, the ones whose only form of attack is a small string of silk?"

Everyone followed his gaze, staring down the hill to where they expected more ferocious, snarling beasts would be. Instead, the entire hill and valley was full of nothing more than happy slithering caterpillars.

Starfire's eyes swelled to twice their size. "We are not honestly considering slaughtering such creatures, are we?" She clasped her hands together, praying there was another way. The darling creatures looked too much like her dear pet Silkie! She couldn't bear to raise a finger towards him, let alone kick and punch creatures that resembled him!

"Can we not just beat up Beast Boy?" Raven wondered.

Cyborg shrugged. "That won't help us improve our abilities at all."

She regarded him with a cool stare. "Who said anything about improving abilities?"

"Guys, _listen_!" Beast Boy protested. "We need to learn, and the only way we can do it is by training on these! Unless you want to go find another robot to kick our asses..."

Cyborg grimaced before he took a deep breath, rolled his shoulders and smacked a palm against his machine gun-hand. "So, who's up for some caterpillar squishing?"

* * *

Control Freak, meanwhile, laughed insanely to himself. On a video feed was a brilliant – if he said so himself – masterwork of the Sefiroth character descending and killing Airith. Of course, he'd edited it so it was him descending and killing the once-Titan Terra. After all, he was a man that closed loopholes; where would be the fun in leaving out the once-Titan?

"_Hehehehe_," he giggled, sounding rather like a chipmunk on helium. Who would have thought the Titans could be so easily bested? "Now Titans, endure the true wrath of this brilliant game!" he announced. He smashed his finger down on a button of his controller, bringing to life a variety of strange, skeletal hounds with meaty bodies, all with one long tentacle extending from their heads. The Titans were going to meet their doom, and Control Freak had the perfect seats in the house!

* * *

"Okay, so maybe that was a good idea."

Robin had to admit, the plan had worked perfectly. Now he could happily wield the ridiculous sword he carried without falling over, though his agility was still lacking. "Well done Beast Bo..."

"Beast Bo?" the changeling echoed, staring at Robin. He followed the teen's gaze, finding himself staring at a pack of hellhounds, each with tentacles snapping above their heads. Behind he saw the telltale uniforms of the game's SOLDIERs, and gulped to himself. He didn't know if they were ready, but there was only one way to find out. "Titans..." he whispered, pulling free his gun and aiming perfectly. "Go!" He fired, and blew a hole in the brains of a demonic beast.

Azeal was the first to reach them, utilising speed he only obtained in his new form. He snarled and leapt at a hound, knocking it over and rolling in a fury of teeth and claws. He slashed and crunched, snapping and severing bone and flesh from the creature, filling it with natural fire he felt coursing through his veins. The beast yelped and exploded into a cloud of ash, detonating with enough force to distort the wind. He used that to his advantage, riding its ascent to carry him snarling into another beast, beginning the process anew.

Robin grunted, flipping his humungous sword before him like a shield. Gunfire rained off the weapon's blade, peppering him with small pieces of shrapnel. At once it stopped and he charged, swinging the blade with surprising strength. He roared and slashed it on the ground, creating small shockwaves that barrelled into all of his enemies at once.

He leapt above a sudden tentacle lash, pivoting in the air to bring his sword's blade down through the creature's back. It howled and burst into nothingness, leaving the Boy Wonder with nothing short of a smirk.

More soldiers advanced, guns trained and ready on their victim. Starfire smiled and flipped underneath the explosion of gunfire with amazing flexibility. She twisted onto her front and pushed herself forwards, launching herself into the sky and descending on them all with a flurry of lethal kicks. Her legs moved of their own accord, slicing and powering into enemies before she even noticed their presence. She ducked and caught a soldier's foot, grabbed his leg and leapt into the air with him, turning to throw him onto his allies with explosive force. She landed neatly, smiling and brushing dust from her scarce clothing before she leapt into the fray again, rejoicing in the strange abilities of this woman.

Cyborg grinned, noting the soldiers attempting to scare him into submission. "Now, y'all don't wanna be messing with me," he said, holding his gun towards them all. "I'm the true expert on firearms here." Bullets suddenly sprayed from his arm, peppering the soldiers with numerous assaults. They grunted artificially and leapt to their sides, unable to fire back under the relentless assault.

"Cy's got a new present for you all," he gloated, feeling his machine gun fall into his arm. A hollow cannon appeared in its place and with little aim it fired, causing a massive explosion that blew almost ten feet off the nearby landscape.

He grinned and blew the smoking cannon. "Booyah."

Raven grunted, watching as the beasts circled around her. She closed her eyes, hugging close to herself. "Azarath... Metrion..." Her eyes snapped open and her shuriken appeared in her grip. "You're dead." She span a full circle, swinging her weapon with deadly precision. It arced around her completely, slicing each creature in two before it sailed back round to her, landing perfectly in her waiting grip.

More snarling beasts arrived behind her, and the girl closed her eyes with a snort born of pity. They roared and leapt, striking thin air as she flipped backwards over them, striking with deadly precision into a beast's chest. Her fingers worked deftly, pulling out a small circular shard of metal from the creature as it wailed and vanished, and she took a moment to glance at the object in her hand.

"Interesting," she whispered, and slashed her hand downwards. The very earth itself shook and erupted, showering her enemies with boiling lava and large boulders. They exploded into thin air, leaving only scorched earth as tokens of their defeat.

Beast Boy, meanwhile, smiled slyly at the remaining creatures attempting to circle him. "I wouldn't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry." He roared inhumanely, swelling in size and becoming a furious purple beast with horns and fiery breath. His hands became savage claws that tore into his foes, wiping their faces of all detail as he breathed fire on the remains, reducing them all to ash before him. He snarled once more, kicking a hound clear across the mountain side before he reverted back to normal, clothes inexplicably reforming on his person.

"Now what did I tell you?" he gloated, leaping towards his friends and wearing a gloating smile. "Did we kick ass or what?"

Robin nodded, batting his gloating aside. "Okay Beast Boy, where do we go from here?"

The changeling pointed towards the distance, hunching over and whispering dramatically, "To the Northern Crater. The source of his power... the location of the ultimate battle."

* * *

"No, _no_, _NO!"_ Control Freak screeched, pulling at his already balding head. "The Titans can't defeat my monsters of ultimate evil! They can't get to the Northern Crater!" He sobbed, burying his face in his hands before an idea struck him. "Of course!" he shouted, snapping his fingers in realisation. "The Northern Crater, home to the most powerful monsters ever... nothing says I can't crank them up a few notches..."

He giggled to himself, pressing more buttons on his remote control. Oh, being evil was so brilliant sometimes.

* * *

"So why can't we just march in and beat Control Freak to a pulp?"

Beast Boy smiled at Raven, tutting at her as he shook his head. "Raven, Raven, Raven. This is a _video game_. They're not the same as movies or books; the bad guy can actually win in here. You have to make sure you're at your best to beat him."

She glanced at him, and then at the enemies she saw. "And that means attacking bouncy balls?"

"Hey, these things are brilliant for levelling up skills!" he defended, shooting one dead with a brilliant shot. "Would you rather we go back to you running away screaming from your shuriken?"

She waved said weapon at him. "How about I test its sharpness with your neck?"

Starfire ducked under some of the curious bouncing balls and kicked at a strange pot, shattering it instantly and launching the creature inside to the far wall. "Would it not be best to fight these strange monsters that fight us? That would seem more rewarding than lowering our own ranks."

Raven shrugged, throwing the oversized shuriken at a group of bouncing balls, popping them instantly. "At least keeping him alive gives us a decoy we can use."

* * *

The world around them was completely distorted. Acidic plumes hovered ominously around them all, regurgitating horrible poisons that threatened to liquefy their innards. Rocks balanced precariously on each other, threatening to let their victims fall to the unseen depths below. Far beneath them, they could hear an eerie calling, something, somewhere beneath was drawing them in, willing them to tread the treacherous path ahead.

"We all ready?" Beast Boy asked, flexing his arms. He waited, receiving the nods and scowls of confirmation. "Alright then, let's mosey."

"'Mosey'?" Cyborg reiterated. "Dude, are you just _trying_ to copy every aspect of the game now?"

The changeling grinned shamelessly, adjusting the headband adorning his skull. "Well, it _is_ an awesome game after all."

"Can we please just get this over with?" Raven groaned, resisting the urge to slice them with her new weapon. "I _really_ want to be back in the land of modesty and clothes that actually _cover_ my body."

As one they walked down the treacherous path, moving further and further towards the centre of where they needed to be. More and more Beast Boy found his heart pounding in sheer exhilaration; he was actually part of the game! Not just playing it, he was actively going through and completing it as if he were in it! It was just seriously too cool!

Which made him realise; he seriously needed to get his hands on Control Freak's remote control. He was sure Robin had one locked up in evidence...

"_Hahaha!_ Welcome to my domain Titans!"

From above Control Freak descended like an unholy angel, single wing flapping manically in order to support him in the air. "So glad you could all joi-_oof!_" he grunted, his wing giving up. He hit the ground with a large impact, losing all traces of power he may have had. He quickly leapt to his feet, pretending such an event never happened as he glared at them all. "This place shall be your doom! For I am the legendary warrior, the one winged angel himself!" He whipped his hand from his coat, revealing the horrific blade used to impale so many. It glinted maliciously in the sparse light, "This site shall be nothing more than your grave!"

Beast Boy grinned, unable to hide the sheer excitement pumping through him. He levelled his gun, sighting Control Freak perfectly as his finger slid over the trigger. "Titans, go!"

He fired, and Control Freak managed to simply _slash_ each bullet in two with his sword. Azeal leapt at him in wolfen form, snarling and biting down hard on his shoulder. Control Freak roared in pain, turning to blast him with magic, moving too slowly as the creature leapt from his shoulder, howled and charged into his legs, knocking the portly man into the air.

Starfire leapt up after him, delivering a flurry of lightning past kicks and punches. She bent backwards as he sliced at her, gripping his waist with her legs. He blushed and hesitated long enough for her to flip backwards fully in the air, crashing down onto the ground with him as a landing cushion.

He grunted, slicing at her with his sword. It clanged with the harsh impact of steel as Robin's huge sword met his. They slashed and sliced, trading blow for blow as sparks flew everywhere. Robin grunted and flipped backwards, somersaulting in the air as a shuriken suddenly speed beneath him. Control Freak yelped and ducked in time to only lose some hair, rather than his head. He looked up and scowled as Raven caught the projectile, stopping and screeching as he began to dance above the gunfire Cyborg peppered his feet with.

"Foolish Titans!" he spat, slashing the very ground with his sword. They all stopped for a moment, steadying themselves as the smallest of vibrations became audible.

Beast Boy realised a second too late. "Run!" he screamed, leaping as far as he could into the air. The very ground split and shattered, letting them all fall into the abyss below. Starfire and Robin began leaping from rock to rock, slowly cimbling their way up as Raven simply ran up the largest pieces of debris, flipping through the air with her character's brilliant skills. Azeal meanwhile yelped and dug his teeth into Cyborg's shirt neck, flinging him upwards with all the strength he could muster. He roared and leapt between falling rocks, bouncing off them all as quickly as he could as he climbed. Cyborg grunted as he pulled himself onto the higher stable ground, glancing around apprehensively as Azeal landed nimbly by his side.

"Why have I gotta be the one that can't jump like that?" he complained, glancing round at his friends. They shrugged, opting to attack Control Freak instead. The villain cackled and began to throw harsh bolts of blue lightning at them all. Raven and Azeal leapt forwards, summoning twin shield of ethereal energy. They blocked around them all perfectly, even allowing Cyborg and Starfire to retaliate in kind with their own.

Robin screeched a war cry and raced forwards, attempting to slice through Control Freak's head. The villain leapt up and away, in time to catch a blast of explosive magic with his legs. He yelped and scrambled for safety in midair, face falling as Beast Boy leapt onto his head and bounced off. The changeling spun in the air, aimed and fired, sinking three bullets perfectly into Control Freak's chest. The villain shrieked as they burnt through his flesh, and hit the ground below with concussive force. Beast Boy landed lithely a few metres away, cloak floating behind him.

"Are we done yet?" Raven wondered, glancing at her gloved hands. There had to be some sort of clue for their release from this world...

"You're completely _done_, Titans!" Control Freak retorted, cackling like a maniac. He stood on shaky legs, eerie glows of various colours coming from his body. His sword fell forgotten on the ground before him as he stumbled forwards, cackling all the while. "Face the wrath of my ultimate attack!"

The world around them darkened, and everything became completely silent. Beyond they saw the distant sun, and the planets spun around and behind them. All of a sudden, the sun itself burst into a million shards of light, burning the very space around them with horrible heat and light. It sped towards everyone before they could even attempt to run, and exploded with enough force to send them all flying backwards into whatever would catch them.

Slowly, light returned, and they each found themselves back in the ethereal plain they were in moments before. One by one the Titans fell to the floor from the attack, burns and bruises giving them enough pain to make them pass out. Only Beast Boy remained, hunched on one knee, panting as he stared up at Control Freak.

The villain had seemingly become fully charged again, his sword was replaced, though his shirt was missing, somehow. Beast Boy wondered if he'd ever actually be able to get rid of the horrifying, sickening sight that was a shirtless Control Freak.

"The Titans have fallen!" the villain gloated. "Only you remain, _Vincenzo._ How does it feel to know you're powerless to stop me?" He cackled once more, advancing on Beast Boy, savouring his time in severing the changeling's head.

Instead, the Titan grinned, laughing smugly to himself. "Have you forgot the main weakness of your current form, _Sefiroth?"_ He pushed himself to his feet, aiming his gun with a shaky hand. He stopped, waiting until the shot felt right before he gloated, "You have one point of health left. Now who's lost?"

_Bang!_

Control Freak wailed as the bullets pierced his chest once more, robbing him completely of his power. His sword warped back into his altered remote control and exploded, showering the world around them in a sea of black and white static.

* * *

One by one, everyone groaned, feeling horrible migraines plague their heads. They stood shakily, blinking past the confusion as they looked around, taking in the familiar surroundings.

"We're back?" Robin whispered, not fully trusting anything. He stepped forwards, stopping abruptly at the wailing man bent on his knees.

"Please!" he begged, clasping his hands together. He knelt before Beast Boy, rocking his hands back and forth. "Tell me how you beat me! Let me know the secret of your power!"

The changeling grinned smugly, blowing imaginary smoke off two fingers. "Dude, everybody knows you level to the maximum before you fight the final boss. It's just common sense!"

Control Freak wailed once more, burying his head on the floor. Robin walked towards him and calmly handcuffed the villain, pulling him to his feet. As quickly as the villain left, everything seemed to return to normal. Beast Boy leapt instantly onto the couch, checking his precious save file, insuring its survival.

Raven walked towards him, feeling more comfortable in her current attire. She heard Cyborg follow after Robin, and Starfire and Azeal both walk into the kitchen, discussing some sort of space-based politics, something regarding a 'citadel'. She pushed it from her mind, focusing on the boy before her, who was glued to the video game screen before him.

"Didn't we just _live_ that game?" she asked, eyebrow raised in surprise.

"Uh-huh." He nodded, not once taking his eyes from the screen. "But that doesn't mean I've completed the game itself. There's still so much more for me to do; I've got to level everyone's stats to the maximum, beat all the bosses..."

She stared at him as he trailed off, full attention returning to the television. Raven sighed, rubbing her temples gently.

"C'mon Rae," he said, turning to smile at her. "You can't honestly say you didn't enjoy it. There must be something you've learnt from it, or even something that you really found fun about it. You did seem to enjoy slicing things up with that shuriken of yours..."

Raven smiled smugly, remembering the texture of the weapon in her hands. She whispered her mantra to herself, pulling her soul-self into familiar form. She glanced at her work and smiled to herself before she threw it, causing Beast Boy to shriek and leap almost a foot backwards in fright.

The boy glanced at the large shuriken composed entirely of black ether. He glanced over at Raven apprehensively, chuckling weakly at the devious smirk on her face. She pulled her hood over her head and walked away, leaving Beast Boy with the ethereal weapon slowly fading from the side of the couch.

Hesitantly he reached over and poked the weapon, jumping again as it faded into nothingness. He gulped, glancing at where it had been before he looked back to the screen. Somehow, he got the feeling Control Freak had just made Raven all the more dangerous.

He just hoped it was in respect to criminals, and not him.


	11. Trial: Accusation

_Disclaimer_

**Teen Titans** is a registered trademark of DC Comics and Cartoon Network Inc. All trademarked characters, locations, themes and ideas are used without permission in a work of fan-created fiction. The following has been done without profit for purely entertainment purposes. All original concepts, characters, themes and ideas within are the copyrighted property of the author, and are not to be reproduced without his prior consent.

* * *

_Before them all stood a humble gathering_

_They were defenceless, and doubtless they wanted to seize on that_

_Earth was faced with little other choice_

_The Justice League had failed... the Teen Titans had failed... everyone had failed_

_And now their only hope to survive was to abandon it all  
_

* * *

Once, the Citadel had been a horrific place, only interested in dominating the galaxy through the might of brute force alone. The first inhabitant had been created by the engineering of the Psions, and had later betrayed them in order to further himself. The Citadel had taken over most of the galaxy by force and underhanded tactics, and were no doubt a galactic version of a mafia family.

Except now, it seemed to be reforming. They adhered to common laws of every nation, creating compromises when races' views differed. Built within a lone space station capable of seating well over a million people, it nested within the hollow space of the Centauri moons. Within the Centauri empire, the moons were known as the most beautiful, filled with boundless amounts of Centauri moon gems. However, it was also the source of extreme dangers, between the natural fail safes of the galaxy like black holes and gravity-less space, to the more sentient bounty hunters.

By building the Citadel's new location within such a location, they could ensure some semblance of safety, as well as dispose of any prisoners found guilty of heinous crimes.

Every race made up the council, save for the humans. The Justice League itself had been contacted to form a presence, but had ultimately refused. They sensed something strange about it, yet never had the time to commit people or resources towards it. Instead, every other race manned the station, from the fierce warriors of Tamaran, to the divided races of martians. Each had a seat and a voice to be heard. The common law enforcement was made of creatures from every race, each donating well-bodied denizens to commit to the cause.

Everyone was welcome in the Citadel, except the psions. Having crafted plots to destroy the various races before, as well as experimenting without discrimination on every race there were, the psions were seen as nothing more than galactic terrorists, intent on slicing sentient creatures up for their own gain.

Strangely enough, the Citadel still considered crimes against the psions. No matter their natures, they were still a race of creatures with emotions and feelings, and thus deserved equal treatment. They hoped that this meant the psions would begin to revert their ways, but nothing had happened yet.

Situated deep within the bowls of the Citadel itself were the darkest, dankest prison cells, held for the most deadly of criminals. Each held for crimes unimaginable to most, they were lucky to escape with their lives intact. Over ninety-six percent of the Citadel's prisoners never saw anything beyond their walls again.

One such prisoner was who the guards were currently going to visit.

Garbed in midnight black armour that seemed to suck in all light, the uniforms clung to the wearer's figure, offering high protection whilst still giving brilliant agility to those who needed it.

Regardless, even in the powerful armour, both guards felt considerably nervous about approaching the latest prisoner. Known for extremely violent tendencies, as well as erratic outbursts and considerable plotting and convincing skills, everyone who treated the prisoner was always expected to be on full alert.

One guard had made a simple slip, he lost his life within a moment. No one wanted to share such an experience.

They reached the prison door, reinforced with metals known only to exist in the deepest, darkest reaches of space. Able to withstand impact from a dozen kryptonians, it was specially made for all prisons throughout the cluster. When dealing with some of the criminals, every penny was worth the added protection.

They unlocked the door, staring into the harsh darkness within. A pair of purple eyes shone in the darkness, rounding on them with what was unmistakeably feral anger. The creature leapt towards them both, snarling in rage. A guard reacted quickly, and smashed the prisoner on the skull with his staff, making her drop the inmate to the floor instantly. He bent down and picked up the creature by its long, black tresses, noting the hunger-stricken and sun-deprived orange skin framing the creature. He snorted distastefully, placing her on her feet.

"Walk," he commanded, shoving her back with the blunt of his staff.

She grunted and snarled curses at him, walking the way they led solemnly. Her wrists were bound before her in power-neutralising metals, making her as weak and pathetic as the many humans inhabiting the planet she despised. Her walk led her through the many corridors of the Citadel's lower sections, leading up to one final location. She refused to show weakness as she approached the large wooden doors holding her fate, meeting them with her head held high in pride.

The doors were opened for her, and she was led into a modern-age galactic court. A large podium was in the middle, allowing a full view of the entire court room, where the jury itself would sit. Towering above that, on the far wall, was another podium, was a space for the judge to be seated on. The entire court was circular in fashion, and every high seat within the court itself was a symbol of power and status; the lower you sat, the less worthy you were in the eyes of others. The spectator's seats were all at the same height, allowing a view of the court itself, though they had to look up to see judge or jury.

And nestled within a small, drab corner, was a small dock that was built into a dip on the floor. Its meaning was perfectly symbolic; whoever stood accused was the lowest of everyone in the room.

The prisoner was shoved roughly in her dock, and she noticed as everyone began to file back into the room after her. She looked up, seeing an ocean of different faces and colours, and found herself unable to identify half of the races of the creatures within. The jury was similar; though she noted the judge himself was a Klamaramarian. Native to the planet Klamara, they were a race of yellow skinned creatures that were nearly humanoid in appearance. However, they had pointed ears, and most strangely of all; no facial features whatsoever. They spoke, breathed and saw without the use of a mouth, nose or eyes. Telepathy was native to them all, replacing their ability to speak conventionally, and they could alter their size at will.

The judge croaked at them all in a tired, weary voice, revealing it to be an elder among its people. _"We have all heard the nature of your crimes. The jury has come to a verdict."_

It was a Slyggian that stood to speak – a strange creature with four arms, no nose, and shrivelled orange skin. It resembled an insect greatly, and spoke in low, hissing tones. "We have," it growled, nodding towards the judge. Its race were only known to a few, though had gained popularity with the emergence of Salaak, a Green Lantern from their planet. "We find the defendant guilty."

The prisoner's eyes widened ever-so-subtly. Rage and terror built within her, and she found that the defendant's box, the courtroom, and the whole _citadel_ was suddenly claustrophobic.

"_Blackfire of Tamaran,"_ the judge croaked, silencing the courtroom. "_You have been found guilty of murder. For your crimes, it is only acceptable you pay in kind."_ He lifted and hammered his gavel on the desk, passing sentence. _"You are sentenced to death in three days."_

* * *

_**Teen Titans**_

**_Corruption's End_**

**Trial; Accusation**

* * *

Starfire hummed to herself, happily swaying her hips along to a mute tune as she sashayed her way through the Tower's kitchen. Mixing bowl in hand, she gently beat the mixture within, not caring about the small amounts of mix that fell over the sides and landed on the floor below. She was happy, and wished to share that with everyone. Whilst on her planet, happiness would be shared by a joint flight followed by a spar without the use of arms, humans seemed to celebrate happiness another way. Instead, like most things, they celebrated happiness with food. And so she set about making treats she knew they would all enjoy, eager to share the joy she felt.

"Cyborg!" she exclaimed, floating over to him even as she continued to beat the mix. "I am most pleased to see you! Will you join me later in celebration of glarv'lshlorg?"

He blinked at her. "Uh, gasundheit?"

"Hm?" Starfire tilted her head in curiosity, not understanding his lack of enthusiasm. Realisation struck her a moment later as she giggled sheepishly. "It's a celebration of a passing of unity, a recognition that you have spent a given amount of time with each other. I believe you call it an 'anniversary'?"

"Uh, yeah, sounds 'bout right." He nodded, not fully understanding where she was going with this.

"It has been seven hundred, thirty and a half days since I arrived on Earth, we beat off the Gordonians, and set up the Teen Titans!" She beamed, and it was obvious to all she was genuinely enthusiastic about the cause.

"Wow, two years already?" Cyborg whistled, folding his arms and smiling. "I'm sorry Star, I can't right now." He shook his head, pulling a face as hers dropped. "I can tonight though, it's just that I promised some kids that we'd all play soccer together today. It was the only way I could get them to stop killing each other. And I _really_ wish I was over exaggerating."

"Oh," she grunted in understanding. "Well, perhaps later then?" she offered, retreating back into her joyous self.

"Definitely," he promised her. "I wouldn't miss out on that, especially with all the effort you're going through. Whatcha making by the way?" he asked. Like the other Titans, Cyborg knew that Starfire's cooking was usually disastrous at best. There were things the girl _could_ cook, though the majority of the time, it ended up a massive mess that looked to be slightly alive.

Scarily enough, it was still better than Raven's cooking.

"I am baking the cake of celebration!" she declared, spinning happily with the bowl still in her grasp. Her movements made her completely miss Cyborg's sudden paling, and she continued on in blissful obliviousness as he left the room, silently grabbing and saving a confused Beast Boy from the alien's cooking.

She continued to hum to herself, carefully selecting the ingredients she needed from the surprisingly sparse cupboards. It was Beast Boy's turn to go shopping, she realised, leaving it no wonder the cupboards were empty. Despite his anti-meat protests, he would always buy every product they ordered, regardless of his animal origin. He had tried once to stock the kitchen with only tofu, and had realised afterwards that he should never attempt to do such a thing again. No one was sure how Raven had managed to make Beast Boy scream in sheer fear whenever he saw the stuff for a month, and no one had ever asked. They considered their sanity was most likely intact due to their blissful ignorance.

Behind her the teapot whistled, and Starfire nearly leapt from her skin. She barely managed to restrain the shocked squeak that threatened her mouth as she turned around, clutching two now-crushed eggs in her hand.

Raven glanced at her and smiled apologetically. "Sorry," she whispered, stepping past her to pour herself a generous measure of hot water. "I thought you had earphones in, considering the way you were dancing and humming round the kitchen."

"It is not a problem." The alien smiled forgivingly, washing the sticky yolk from her hands. She began to hum to herself again, speaking over her shoulder to her fellow female Titan. "Would you care to partake in the celebration of our two year anniversary? The Titans were formed on this day, all that time ago."

Raven nodded above her cup, leaning slightly on the counter. "It sounds... fun," she admitted, blowing on the liquid before she took a sip. She noted the bowls containing various mixtures, as well as the ingredients still out on the sides. If she was cooking, it was no wonder she'd walked past Cyborg and Beast Boy near enough sprinting from the tower. "Are you making all that for the celebration?" she asked. She knew if the answer was a 'yes', she was most likely going to be making a trip to the nearest bakery sometime in the next hour, if only to save them all a week of being confined to the bathrooms.

"Yes," Starfire answered, brushing yet more flour off herself; succeeding in only smearing it down her stomach. "I asked the man at the counter what the best recipes were for cakes humans adored for celebrations." She turned around and placed a finger to her chin, reflecting on the trip. "He told me I should make a particular type of cake called... hash brownies?" she related, tasting the words on her tongue as if unsure of their correct phrasing.

Raven's eyes widened considerably. "Starfire... you're not _making_ hash brownies, are you?" Given the girl's naivety to human culture, she wouldn't put it past her, though she desperately hoped the girl had some sense about her.

Thankfully, she shook her head, knocking some hair loose from her hastily-constructed ponytail. "I am not," she confirmed, much to Raven's relief. "When I asked how to make them, and he described the ingredients within, I realised the effects one would have. I forced him to destroy his stock, as well as donate all the money he had earned through their sale to various charities scattered across the city."

Raven smirked to herself, laughing at Starfire's open honesty. It was always humorous to talk to her - as much as the empath may deny it at a later date. Though she hoped that the stock hadn't been destroyed by means of fire... though she considered she was probably better off not knowing that small detail. She blew on her tea once more, considering the alien as she felt the waves of joy and excitement rolling off her, almost to the point of making Raven herself nauseous. Evidentially, this whole event meant a lot to Starfire.

"I'll go to the store later and buy the drinks," Raven volunteered, smiling inwardly at the elation that burst from Starfire. Of course, she didn't mention she'd probably be buying a few replacement cakes there – but what Starfire didn't know couldn't hurt her. "You seem to have your hands full here, and doubtless the guys won't lift a finger to make any, but will devour it all in a fraction of a time it took you to make it."

"Oh, thank you Raven!" she exclaimed, resisting the urge to envelop the girl in a bone-crushing hug. "I truly do not mind if they devour all the food I prepare. I only wish that we enjoy and embrace the feeling of togetherness that glarv'lshlorg brings!"

Raven nodded, cupping both her hands round her mug, savouring the warmth. "I'll leave you to prepare our feast then," she said, walking towards the metallic doors to the hallway. As much as she would have liked to offer help – and she found she actually wouldn't mind – she knew that when Starfire was cooking, it was safest to stay well out of the way. It was nothing to do with her cooking itself, it was just that Starfire was such a perfectionist, that if you made one tiny mistake, you were likely to get a starbolt to the face.

Raven just wished she'd caught it on camera when Beast Boy was introduced to one.

Starfire hummed to herself again, pulling her hair once more into its ponytail, heedless of the flour and sugar becoming encrusted in her crimson locks. She poured the cake mixture gently into a tin and set it in the oven, placing it at the correct time. Usually she would place it at higher temperatures; theorising that it would cook faster, but this time, she wanted it all to be perfect. If it meant waiting an hour for the cake, she would use the hour to bake more delicious treats for her friends.

She twirled to herself, reaching into the fridge for butter when a green gloved hand stopped her from shutting it. "Robin!" she exclaimed, wrapping him instantly in a hug. Knowing her super-human strength could prove hazardous to him, she managed to successfully hug him without crushing his ribs to dust. Instead, she covered him in a healthy coat of cake mixture.

He looked down at himself and laughed, reaching into the fridge for a bottle of water. "Good thing I was going for a shower anyway." He drained the bottle in ravenous thirst, watching Starfire as she turned back to her work, smiling at her joy in creating the foods. Watching her like that, he couldn't help deny that some part of him wanted to leap to the rooftops, scream and celebrate that _he_ was the one the otherworldly beauty had chosen. Instead he cleared his throat and asked inquisitively, "What are you making?"

She offered him a smile over her shoulder. "I have placed a cake of celebration within the oven. Right now, I am preparing to make the cookies of chocolate chip." She reached out for the flour, measuring by eye the amount she needed as she held the bag upside down and dumped it into her mixture. "Tell me, do people like almonds and raisins instead of chocolate?"

Robin smiled, moving closer to watch her work. "Not everyone does Star. Most of the time, the chocolate's the best bit." He caught sight of her slight look of sadness and added, "But I like them better Star." He placed his hand gently on her arm, leaning ever closer. "I like anything you do, you know that." He knew it sounded incredibly cheesy, and that he would probably regret saying that at a later date, but at that moment, he didn't care. As long as Starfire was happy when he was with her, he could honestly say nothing else really mattered.

"You are most sweet," she whispered appreciatively, cupping his cheek within her hand. She laughed as she pulled her hand away, noting the flour-print she left on his face. He frowned and wiped a finger across it, smirking at the white substance left on his gloved fingertip. He grinned slyly and reached forwards, smearing it over her nose. She giggled and reached backwards, grabbing the bag itself before she dumped it over him, coating him completely in flour.

He coughed, expelling a white cloud from his lungs. "... guess you got me," he admitted lamely, staring in astonishment at his flour-coated clothes. "I look like a low-budget Halloween ghost," he decided, brushing as much of it off him as he could.

She giggled once more, pushing him away lightly. "Go shower," she commanded, turning back to her bakery. "You're making the kitchen more like a sty of pigs by coating it with flour."

He smirked, biting back his retort as he noticed the various substances covering every surface there was. He doubted even Cyborg's advanced optical scanners could see kitchen beneath all the food. Instead he nodded, brushing her arm lightly as he walked away, leaving the room for a much-needed shower.

Starfire turned around, wondering where she had heard such a tune before. It stuck to her mind like the silk of a novark worm, making her unable to think of anything else. She frowned, briefly considering the music of her friends within the tower. She knew it was upbeat and catchy, which ruled out Raven instantly, and Robin did not listen to any music. It did not contain the obnoxious tones of Beast Boy's music, nor the subtle infusions of instruments and vocals that Cyborg's held. Admitting defeat, she pushed the thought aside, smiling softly as she noticed Azeal walk into the room. He smiled back and watched her for a moment, wondering silently just what it was she was creating.

Eventually he broke the silence by asking, "Can I have some water?"

She blinked, not believing her ears at first. "Of course you can!" she said, stopping baking for a moment. "You live in the tower, just as the rest of us do. You do not need to ask for permission to eat and drink!"

He smiled his thanks, reaching into the fridge and pulling out a bottle of the clear liquid. Taking a small sip, he replaced the cap and shook his head at her. "You say I live here, yet I do not feel the same. While you all have clothes and personal belongings here, I have nothing more than a bed and drawers, and only two sets of clothes that used to belong to Beast Boy." He pulled at the purple top he wore in statement, answering Starfire's silent wonder of where she had seen it before. "I also think that Robin has placed a tracer bug on me, given his allowance of me to walk parts of the tower alone. Logically, it leads me to believe I do not live here, rather I am being held here."

Starfire went to deny the accusation, though found the retort died in her throat. As much as she would have liked to say otherwise, she found it was, in fact, true. Until they figured out who was after Azeal, he was effectively stuck in the tower. Instead, she buried herself in the suddenly interesting cookie mix.

Azeal remained, knowing he had most likely overstepped the mark. He whispered to himself, taking note of her slightly tensed shoulders and quiver beginning in her back. It was obvious she was upset and slightly confused as to what to say next.

"Starfire... are you an only child?"

She blinked, not comprehending at first. She turned around, cookie mix forgotten as she looked at her fellow alien in confusion. "Why do you wish to know?"

He shrugged, placing the water bottle on the side. "I'm an orphan," he admitted, rubbing at a shoulder. "And an only child. As far as I'm aware, everyone else is the same."

She nodded, placing a hand on her forearm awkwardly. "I do have siblings," she admitted, however sore the topic may be for her. "I have both an older sister, as well as a younger brother."

He nodded. "What's it like?" he asked in genuine interest. "I've always wondered. Everyone else at our orphanage was the same. There's only so much you can bond with other people... but blood bonds are supposedly unconditional."

Starfire laughed to herself. "I wish that were completely true," she admitted, turning back to her cooking. "I feel that way with my younger brother – however, I have not seen him in many years. My older sister, however, has decided to make her existence a continual bane for me."

"Oh," Azeal whispered. "I'm sorry."

She shrugged. "There is nothing for you to be sorry for." She carried on mixing for a moment before she asked, "Why did you wish to know?"

He rubbed at his older scar. "It's just part of who I am. I like to know things. I like talking to people and bonding with them, as well as reading as much as I can. There was a great library on Xienaqs that I used to go to all the time." He stared towards the ceiling, becoming lost in memories. "I talk to people, because it makes me feel closer to them. Logically, the more someone shares with you, the stronger the bond of friendship between you. I... I don't honestly feel like I have friends here. You tolerate me, as does Beast Boy and Cyborg, though Robin and Raven both seem deeply suspicious of me."

Starfire shook her head, gingerly placing a hand on his shoulder. "We do wish to be more than what we are now. It is just..." she stopped, biting her bottom lip. "There was someone we took in before, who we thought was a friend. She betrayed us like a vile klorbag, attacked us all and left us for dead. But then, she turned again at the last moment, and sacrificed herself for our city." She stopped, staring out of the window distantly. "The pain of betrayal does not go away easily," she whispered, sounding like she had other experience in the subject. "Even now, we are still coping with the pain, and do not wish for a repeat performance."

He nodded in understanding. "No one ever does," he said, smiling as he drew her attention. "I'm an orphan from a planet where the undesired are killed, remember? There would always be children selling each other out to get a few steps ahead of each other. Because of my mark-" he pointed to his older scar, "- I have always been a low rank in society. I had many people use and abuse my confidence as I grew up. Eventually, I stopped sharing," he admitted with a shrug. "I buried myself in books. From them, I learnt of Earth, humans, and the trait of humanity. I always dreamed of coming here, that it would be a land where people go out of their way to help and understand others, like it is portrayed in books." He laughed to himself, grabbing his water again. "Logically, I should not have believed it. Books are always full of propaganda. Everything is always made to seem better than it is."

Starfire considered him for a moment. She noticed the tell-tale signs hidden behind his eyes, the far-away haunted look that her and her friends all shared. The pain of betrayal; a feeling they all shared, though perhaps for different reasons. If he was to betray them all, he was certainly going out of his way to befriend them first, though if he sincerely wanted to be a friend to them all, he was trying his hardest to achieve that.

She thought about it all, and decided on her choice. On Tamaran, they led their lives with emotions as fuel. Unlike the Earth custom of keeping one's enemies closer, Tamaraneans would befriend them and treat them as best they could, in order to show them they were not afraid, and as a small hope that their friendship would turn the enemy into an ally.

"There is going to be a celebration later," she informed him, returning to her cookie mix. "It is in honour of glarv'lshlorg; a celebration of the two years we have spent together as Titans."

Azeal nodded and dropped his head in understanding. "Oh, okay, I get you. You want me out the way, right? I'm not a Titan, so I shouldn't intrude..."

"Nonsense!" Starfire exclaimed, floating after him. "It is a celebration of unity for all. As you are now living with us in the tower, I would like to invite you to our festivities." She smiled, placing a hand on his shoulder. She knew it was an earth gesture of comfort, even if her planet treated it as the second step towards courtship. "If you truly do seek to help us battle this evil you believe will attack us, then we will need to be friends, as well as allies."

His face brightened in an instant. The continual lightning that sparked through his sclera increased tenfold, and a small grin tugged at the corners of his mouth. "I would like that," he admitted, placing his water back on the counter. He watched as Starfire grinned once more, turning back to her bakeries. "Do you want any help?" he asked, noticing her attempt to create several dishes at once.

She blinked, craning her neck to face him once again. "That would be most welcome!" she replied, gesturing for him to stand beside her. "I need another batch of cookie mix to be made. Though I fear we may end up with less than I anticipated, after I threw the remains of a pack of flour over Robin."

Azeal snorted, understanding now why Robin was covered in the strange white powder. "There must have been reason for that," he concluded, staring at the ingredients list before him. "Did he upset you in some way?"

She giggled, shaking her head as she worked. "No, it seems to be an Earthly custom. Occasionally food products will be slung at each other, instead of consumed. I originally thought it another way that humans absorbed nutrients, but they supposedly do this when they want enjoyment."

He nodded for a moment, confused entirely. "Humans are strange," he decided.

She smiled once more. "I thought so too, when I first came here. However, their mannerisms do quickly become absorbed. They seem to find enjoyment in strange, simple things, yet they do seem to rival entertainment on other planets."

Azeal considered this in silent understanding. He went back to squinting at the ingredients list, completely confused and lost. He stared at it a moment longer, hoping the words would somehow make sense. However, nothing happened, and with a defeated expression, he turned round to the other alien. "Starfire... what is... flo-ur?"

She turned round with an interested grunt, glancing quickly at the ingredient list. "Oh, that is 'flour'. It is the white powdery substance I coated Robin in earlier. Strangely, it is nothing like the other 'flower' that means the small plants indigenous to this planet. Apparently they are very different, and are not fit for human consumption. Humans do seem to have very many words that account for more than one thing. It is most confusing sometimes."

She smiled once more, explaining every ingredient to him, pointing out the small differences between them all. After he told her he couldn't knead anything, due to the poison barbs contained within his knuckles, she decided he would make the basic mixes, and she would take the more hands-on work. It worked well, as she soon found that the rate of the food production had increased magnificently.

"Azeal," she began in the middle of their baking. "What types of books and studies did you do on your home planet?" Every planet learnt different things, after all. She still found it amazing that humans didn't learn tactical combat or about other alien races in their schools. Everything else made sense to her; learning of their species' history, as well as religions and other languages, yet never the ability to defend themselves. It was most strange.

"Everything really," he replied, beating an egg into a mixture. "We learnt about our history, our religions, as well as power controls and self-defence. There was a lot with the sciences, such as chemistry and biology. I saw what they learnt in the education facilities here," he said, eyebrows knit in confusion. "They learn at most basic levels. I saw someone of possibly seventeen sun cycles studying at the levels we completed at seven sun cycles on X'ienaqs." He stopped, gathering some sugar for his mixture. "It is also strange that they spend such small amounts of time in education. On my world, we would spend seventeen hours a day in education. Our days were thirty hours long, admittedly, but logically, spending the majority of the day learning is most beneficial."

Starfire giggled, swaying along as she folded cake mix in her bowl. "I agree, it is most strange. Everything on earth does seem to be very laid-back in comparison. I do wonder if any earthling could cope with the upbringings native to other planets." She smiled to herself, happily accepting a large lump of dough meant for her cookies. "Where did you learn English though?" she asked, grunting as she kneaded the cookie dough. "My species learn other languages through skin contact, but you seemed to know it instantly."

Azeal shrugged, moving hair from his face, successfully coating it in sticky egg-goo. "We learnt it in our education systems. According to our Elders, what is called English here is the trade tongue on most multi-species planets. It is convenient for earthlings that their most prominent language is also the trade tongue used throughout our galaxy. I believe the largest multi-species location to use it now is the Citadel."

Starfire dropped her bowl at the mention of the place. It shattered into a dozen shards on the floor, spraying them both with china pieces and cake mix. She exhaled a long, slow breath as he turned to look at her, worry evident in his composure. "The Citadel is a _vile, evil_ place," she hissed, turning to find a broom to sweep up her mess. "It is full of klorbags; the death of whom would result in a most glorious result for the rest of the galaxy."

Azeal stepped after her, shaking his head superfluously to her back. "The Citadel has changed now. We learnt about it half a sun cycle ago in education. It was supposedly a joint effort by the Green Lantern Corps, as well as the Guardians of the Universe. No one can prove that, so logically, any species could be behind it, but it has now become a large hub of organisation, orchestrating justice and galactic-wide financial aid for all."

Starfire scoffed under her breath. "I will be forgiven if I do not believe such a tale. It was the Citadel who invaded Tamaran and forced my parents into selling me into slavery."

"Oh," Azeal whispered, scratching at his newer, white scar. "I apologise. I didn't mean to bring up bad memories."

She shrugged and dumped the bowl's remains into the trash with angered force. "It is forgiven. You did not know of my past, so would not know it is a subject of which I do not wish to discuss." She scowled, flexing her wrists as she felt a sense of complete fury burning through her hands. She would not be beaten by such memories, nor would she ever succumb to them. As far as she was concerned, if she never heard of it again, it would still be too soon.

* * *

Blackfire squatted alone in her cell, forcing her nose not to inhale the unsavoury scents floating around within. She wasn't sure what manner of creature occupied this space before her, but she was completely certain it was a most foul creation.

Her mind however, was elsewhere. She was slowly unravelling every pathway she had walked in the Citadel, playing it back in her mind, searching for any possible weakness or opening she could exploit. Regardless of the charges against her, and the sentence given, she was _not_ going to perish in this location. She would escape, _somehow_, and later exact her vengeance on them all. She wasn't sure who had dealt the whisperings of her crimes, but she would make certain they would pay.

She heard footsteps approaching her cell, and her eyes lit up in blazing purple vehemence. The doors unlocked and she glared at the green martian stood in her cell's doorway, noting his lack of flinching or fear of her. At least this one wasn't a coward, unlike so many of the others.

"Kormand'r," he hissed, stepping in her cell towards her. "We have reviewed your crimes, and come across a strange turn of events needed for your punishment."

Hope lit within her, though she kept the scowl present on her face. She refused to show any sign that she was weak, and that she wasn't going to face her supposed 'punishment' with regret and fear.

"Due to your... royal nature," he said, staring awkwardly at her. "Regardless of your exile, we find ourselves seeking a new course of action. According to Tamaran state laws, a member of the royal family can only be executed by a blood relative. We were unable to locate your blood brethren Ryand'r, however, we know of the location of Koriand'r. We are in the process of contacting her now. Upon her arrival at the Citadel, you will be informed, and your execution will be carried out then." He turned back towards the doorway, smirking sardonically in the small light. "Until then, enjoy your extended days of life."

The door slammed shut, and Blackfire's eyes receded their glow. She had to wait until her sister arrived to carry out her punishment... the woman smiled darkly to herself in the depths of her cell. Her sister was many things, but never sororicidal. Perhaps that was her salvation; she could use her sister to somehow aide in her escape.

Blackfire smiled to herself. She was sure, somewhere, X'hal was smiling down back on her.

* * *

Starfire giggled happily to herself. The tower's common room was decorated in a mixture of various coloured streamers and ribbons, all making the room look exceptionally festive. The main table of the room had been overloaded with junk food of all sorts, and the alien was sure her friends were to love the plethora of food awaiting them.

"Bad Silkie!" she yelped and swept her pet larva up in a flurry of motion. "You must remain on the couch and not ingest the foods of deliciousness!" she chided him, holding him close to her serious face. "These are for everyone to enjoy, not just yourself!"

The pet gurgled a small agreement, which only caused Starfire to smile once more and nestle herself close to the creature.

She spun happily in the air after depositing Silkie back on the couch, and found herself completely bewildered as she stared at the large computer console in the room. She was certain Robin had used it on many occasions to call in the whole team for meetings, though she had to admit she had no idea which button she was meant to press. She shrugged and decided she would resort to the Earth methodologies of fixing technology; to hit it. She dropped her fist on the computer console with gentle force – to her – and succeeded only in shattering it into a hundred sparkling metal pieces.

She pressed a hand to her mouth. "Oops."

All around, the familiar siren of the tower blared. This time however, a blue light flashed continually, and Starfire found herself mesmerised by the new coloured light. She was not familiar with this protocol; did it mean someone was doing good for a change? Red was often associated with bad things on Earth, though people considered blue a good thing, as it symbolised the colour of both the air and the sea.

Her question was answered with Robin raced into the room and did a double take, only able to see a decorated common room and a shattered, sparking computer console behind Starfire. He could only stare numbly as he lifted up a hand and activated a hidden switch to disable the alarm.

Everyone else raced in behind him, and they all found themselves staring in complete amazement at the combination of food and destroyed equipment.

Starfire beamed sheepishly. "Um, happy glarv'lshlorg friends!"

Raven deadpanned. "Let me guess; a Tamaranean festive of destroying machinery and eating junk food?"

Starfire leapt up and shook her head. "No! It is a festival of unity; a celebration of our time together! I explained this to you earlier!" she chastised, and placed her hands on her hips. "It is what Earthlings call an 'anniversary'; it has been two years to the day since we formed our team!"

Beast Boy didn't waste a moment. "Alright!" he exclaimed, leaping towards the offered food with vigour. "Oh. My. God," he wheezed as his mouth threatened to overflow with drool. "Cakes... cookies... chocolate... rice pudding... fizzy pop and _ohmygod!_" he squealed like an excited schoolgirl and dove at the kitchen counter, a string of drool managing to drip aimlessly from his mouth. "Skittles!" he exclaimed, dipping a hand into the bowl of food. "And smarties! And even wine gums!" He grinned like a maniac and leapt at Starfire, sweeping her up in a crushing hug. "You know you're like the best friend _ever_, right?" he cooed, eyes lighting up like shining diamonds.

Starfire giggled bashfully, savouring the feeling of joy her friends seemed to emit.

Raven however, was the first to break it. "Did you make all of this?"

"Of course!" Starfire replied, cheerily managing to float even higher in the air. "Glarv'lshlorg is not the same without homemade bakeries!"

All around her, her friends turned a shade of green – green_er_ in Beast Boy's case.

"Rest assured," she promised them all, "I followed the instructions perfectly. I wanted everything to be perfect for my friends on this glorious day!"

A devious smirk appeared on Cyborg's face. "Go on BB, try some." He crossed his arms as a devilish glint appeared in his human eye. "You don't want to waste any of this food Starfire happens to have prepared, do you?"

The changeling backed away nervously from the Tamaranean, hoping like there was no tomorrow that something could distract them from the food. It looked good, it smelt _heavenly_, and he was sure his stomach could be heard over three blocks away. The problem was, Starfire's human food always looked and smelt delicious, though was always in someway scarring.

Starfire turned to him with the biggest, most innocent and puppy-like eyes she could muster. "You will try some of my bakeries, will you not?"

Raven smirked deviously. "You wouldn't want to be impolite now, would you?"

He shrunk away nervously. "Uh..." He leapt to his feet with a joyous cry. "Robin, since you're our team leader, and Starfire's _boyfriend_, I think you should try it!"

However, the Boy Wonder had other ideas. He crossed his arms and decided, "Since I'm team leader, I can give out orders." He smirked victoriously and Beast Boy yelped in defeat. "And I _order_ you to try Starfire's food."

Beast Boy glanced between them all, horror etched on his face. He gave up and dropped his head, only able to admit defeat. "Some friends," he grumbled and made way to the table. He sat down before a large chocolate fudge cake and hesitantly reached for a spoon, unable to stop his arm from shaking. It was just a cake... it was just a cake... it wouldn't hurt him. He scooped off a small piece of cake and hesitantly moved it closer to his mouth, dreading the taste that was to come. He scrunched his eyes shut and thrust the spoon in, closing his mouth over the cutlery.

Instantly he squeaked in alarm and tears poured from his eyes. He drew the spoon from his mouth and looked from it to Starfire with unmatched admiration in his face. "That is the best cake. Ever."

Starfire giggled happily as her friends, reassured in her cooking, all rushed forwards to devour her food. She blinked once, counting the people within the room. "Friends," she said, drawing them away from her bakeries. "Where is Azeal?"

Cyborg shrugged. "Prob'ly in hith room or s'mth'n," he spoke around a mouthful of cake. "Why?"

The alien placed her hands on her hips. "Because he is now a member of our home, and we should invite him to our festivities." She glared at them all, managing to burn them with her blazing eyes. "We have invited him into our home and treat him as no more than a burden or a skivaar beetle in a mastig's clothing!"

They blinked at her analogy.

She fumed and seemed to blow steam from her breath. "I shall go and retrieve him. He is as welcome to join our festivities as anyone else." She watched as they slunk away from her food guiltily. "And I shall not have _anything_ ruin this day!"

As if on cue, the tower suddenly shook and pieces of ceiling fell from above.

"What was that?" Beast Boy yelped.

Robin's face darkened. "Trouble."

* * *

The Titans all rushed towards the roof, meeting Starfire up there waiting with Azeal. She had told them with unmatched stubbornness that if something were threatening their home, he was to be considered and help out, even if the other Titans had forgot him in their haste to find the cause of trouble. Now the two aliens were waiting for them, looking completely lost.

"Any idea what's out there?" Cyborg grunted.

Azeal shrugged. "A heavy inter-world ship by the feel of the quake." He looked up at Starfire as she nodded her agreement. "Given the weight of impact, it would logically be a large aircraft, meaning it will be able to transport possibly over ten persons at once."

Robin nodded grimly, hand on the door's handle. "Alright. Let's go see what they want."

He thrust the door open and basked them all in evening sunset. Instantly visible on the tower's roof was the vast shadow that was cast over them all, originating from the strange aircraft before them. It was a deep, dark grey and stood at least two stories high. Two large wheels held it stable on the ground, and two large wings protruded out from its sides. Underneath each wing were two large cannons that seemed to have enough firepower to level Jump itself. The body of the ship stretched behind and in front of the wings, resembling a large cylinder of sorts, though with a skywards-pointing pin on the back and a rounded from, giving it a more aerodynamic shape.

Two strange, alien figures walked towards them all, mouths both set in grim lines and weapons visible in their hands.

On the left was a slightly human-bodied creature that stood nearly six foot tall. It wore a shining metallic pink breastplate and mini skirt, and small metallic tassles hung from its armour. Two large purple bands adorned each of its wrists, and a barbute the same colour as its breast plate adorned its head, and equally coloured gladiator boots adorned its feet. Its face was sunken and withered, and two small eyes were barely more than slits underneath its heavy brow. It had no nose, and its mouth was small and barely bigger than an inch in length. In its right hand it carried a long spear that glowed an ethereal purple, and a constant low hum buzzed from it.

Starfire found her breath caught. "A Zamaron," she breathed.

"They're an all-female race," Azeal supplied to the Titan's looks of confusion. "They first inhabited the planet Maltus and are distantly related to the Oans."

Walking beside her was an alien that was slightly more humanoid in appearance. It had orange skin and was bald, though deep black eyes stared at them all from its face. It had a strange, sharp nose and wore a lightweight armour of a dark green colour, with long forearm guards and knee-length armoured boots of the same colour. It carried an alien designed gun in its hands and gripped it with an obvious resolve to use it if need be.

The titans couldn't help but drop into a slightly defensive pose. The two aliens stopped a non-invasive distance from them and offered tentative nods.

It was the Zamaron who spoke. "We have come seeking Koriand'r of Tamaran," she rasped, her voice deep and like nails on a chalkboard.

Starfire took a deep breath. "I am she," she confirmed, holding her head high, though remained close to her friends. "For what purpose am I wanted?"

The orange one – a Vulxan – answered. "You are wanted to aid in a matter on the Citadel."

It was like someone had flipped a switch. Instantly Starfire dropped into a feral crouch and emerald fury dripped from her hands. "I have _no_ business with the Citadel!" she snarled. "Leave. _Now!_"

The Vulxan steadied his grip on his gun as the Titans dropped lower, following Starfire's lead. Only the Zamaron remained calm, and she placed a hand on her companion's shoulder, shaking her head gently. "We are not here to make a repeat of your history," she promised, keeping her distance. "The Citadel has changed greatly within the past few sun cycles, and is now a galactic hub of communication and justice, run by almost every species within the galaxy."

Starfire sneered and turned her nose up. "You will forgive me for not believing you." Although, it seemed to ring true to her now, after all, Azeal had mentioned something along those lines to her earlier.

The Zamaron crossed her arms. "I am Eir'go," she said. She pronounced it 'E-r-go'. "I am a Citadel guard representing the Zamaron race. Believe me when I say this, Koriand'r of Tamaran, that the Citadel means you no harm."

Starfire touched down back on the roof, letting the emerald fury vanish from her hands, though not her eyes. "Then what is it you require of me?" she challenged.

Eir'go's features hardened. "You are to carry out the execution of your blood-sister Kormand'r."

_**To be continued...**_


	12. Trial: False Witness

_**Teen Titans**_

**_Corruption's End_**

**Trial; False Witness  


* * *

**

_They saw, but they couldn't believe it_

_They heard, but still couldn't believe_

_They even smelt, but it didn't make sense_

_Every bit of reason said such a thing could never have happened_

_But Hell had invaded Earth_

_

* * *

_

Starfire was certain that she had misheard the alien creature before her. Of all the things she had expected to here, that was not one of them. They told her that the Citadel had reformed, that it was no longer a place of vile thoughts and wishes.

And then they told her they wanted her to kill her sister.

Fury washed off her in litres, and she was certain that she heard her friends gasp behind her. None of that mattered as the world turned a violent shade of green under her glowing eyes. "If the Citadel means me no harm, then why does it wish for me to execute my sister?"

The Zamaron regarded her with a cautious expression. She seemed to understand that the moment Starfire had heard enough, her and her friends would attack. She had been told to bring the princess in, though would prefer to do it without force.

She formed her response as diplomatically as she could. "The new Citadel uses a combination of laws from all peoples and races in the galaxy. It reached common consensus that harsh crimes – like those carried out by your blood-sister – are only deemed punishable by death." She stopped speaking a moment, and for a split second it seemed like a look of understanding regret passed through her. "Your blood-sister was found guilty, and sentenced to death. However, there have been Tamaranean laws uncovered that say a person of royal blood can only be executed by another of royal blood, otherwise they are free to fight between themselves for the next leader."

Starfire's heart attacked her chest, and she was sure it was pumping ice-cold water through her veins. She couldn't execute her own sister... but she couldn't let her people resort to killing each other for leadership. She never knew of such a law, but then again, she was taken from her homeland at an early age. There was much she never got the chance to learn, and this may well have been one of those such things. Her heart was torn, and she spared the briefest glance towards her friends. They all looked shocked, angry and disbelieving, but she knew that they were only going to follow her lead here. She was not in danger, and they did not want to provoke an attack by forcing the strange aliens to leave.

She breathed, long and hard, mulling over her decision. She couldn't turn away and leave it – she knew that if this law were in fact, true, then her refusal would mean her brother would have to carry out the execution of their sister. Her eyes welled with tears and a hand flew over her heart. She had not seen him in so long, and feared it would destroy him if he were forced to partake in such an act. She had to at least go to see what terrible crimes her sister was convicted of. She knew Kormand'r was many things, but she truly didn't believe it was something worthy of punishment by execution.

The light faded from her eyes, and she tried her best to not show the defeat she felt inside. "I shall go to your new Citadel, and I shall see with my own eyes what has become of such a _vile_ place, and shall hear with my own ears the crimes my sister has been punished for partaking in." She held her back up straight and kept her posture as high and royal as she could. "But I shall _not_ travel with you there," she growled, inwardly smiling at the two alien's joint look of shock. "If you wish me to travel with you to your Citadel, then I shall only travel there with the company of my friends." She floated an inch into the sky and dropped into rank with them, though still made sure she was standing before them all.

Silently, her team mates were impressed. They'd never really seen her handle a situation with such authoritative grace, and realised that under her naivety to human culture, she knew what she was doing in regards to interstellar politics.

She held up a hand to silence the Vulxan before he could demand otherwise to her terms. "You wish for me to visit the Citadel as a matter of royal nature. I relinquished my claim on the throne, yet you hold me to it because of blood ties. Because of such, I am able to be treated by the terms of royal nature according to my own planet, yes?" She waited a moment, long enough for the two aliens to nod in answer. She would have smiled if it were not such a grim situation. "The rules of my planet say that when a member of royal blood visits another planet, he or she is entitled to a royal guard of as many persons as they see fit." She spared her friends the briefest glance and smile. "I enlist my friends – the Earth-group known as the Teen Titans to act as my royal guard."

Eir'go smiled to herself, respecting the wisdom of the young princess before her. "Those terms are acceptable," she told them. Her race could manipulate the violet energies that made up the entire universe, and like all other light-energy manipulations, hers were forced by an emotion: love made violet energy bend to her will. She could see the bonds of love between the five of them, though left her concerns unvoiced to the lack of it between their sixth. "Group known as Teen Titans, do you accept the role of royal guard for Koriand'r of Tamaran?"

Beast Boy almost laughed at her. "Dude! Duh!"

Robin quickly growled at him, even as Cyborg jabbed him in the side and Raven cuffed the back of his head. "We accept the role," he said, understanding the need for protocol in such a situation.

Starfire beamed at him momentarily before she turned back to the aliens wishing to lead her to her sister's murder. "We shall follow you in our own ship," she stated, stubborn in her decision. "It is the only way I shall travel towards your Citadel."

Eir'go nodded once more. "Very well," she agreed, before her hot-headed partner could disagree. "We shall wait for you just outside of the Earth's atmosphere; sixty-three degrees east of our present location. If we do not receive response from you, or find your ship accompanying us within the next hour, we shall come back down and take you within our own."

Starfire nodded. "Acceptable," she agreed, and watched with an impassive face as the two aliens returned to their ship. She waited until they were far enough out of sight before her composure collapsed around her, and she felt the weight of her friends surround her and try to lift her spirits. "Kormand'r..." she whispered, wondering just what her sister had done.

"Dude!" Beast Boy was shouting, leaping around her wildly. "What on earth just happened? They were all like serious, business people, and you completely flipped and started acting just like them!" He peered at her from a distance and seemed to want to open up her head and prod her brains. "Did someone replace you with a robot? Or did they just hit you with some weird hocus-pocus?"

Raven glared at him, well aware he shot a look at her hooded head with his last words. "Believe it or not Beast Boy, people can be intelligent and well traversed in areas we might not expect." She felt him smile behind her, and the cacophony of emotions made her nauseous. "Of course, you're merely the exception that proves the rule."

He wilted behind her, and she allowed herself a small smirk. All traces of humour vanished from her face, however, once Robin spoke. "We need to get to the ship and follow them," he stated, rather obviously, they felt.

"What if the T-Ship's not up to following them into far-out reaches?" Cyborg countered. He knew his brilliant ship could traverse almost anywhere, but wasn't willing to overlook the fact it had limitations in certain situations. This was one such situation he didn't want the ship to wither and die underneath them in.

Azeal considered everything silently as the Titans mulled over the choice. "Is the ship you use in better or worse condition than the one I rode here?"

Cyborg almost laughed in his face. Instead he managed a proud grin, though kept his voice even, if only for Starfire's sake. "Course it is," he related, offended. "That little rust-bucket you came here in is nothing more than a horse-and-cart in comparison to _my_ ship!"

Azeal didn't understand the reference, though he gathered from the obvious signs of pride coming from Cyborg that his ship was indeed better than that he had rode to Earth. "Then logically, you should be able to travel to the Citadel."

Starfire didn't say anything. She remained motionless, her eyes trained only on the floor beneath them. What was it her sister could have done to deserve such punishment? There couldn't be anything, she found herself thinking. She knew her sister was many things; a thief, a betrayer of blood, even – dare she say it – a royal butt-pain. But she couldn't think of her sister doing _anything_ that would require such a harsh verdict.

"We should go to the ship," she whispered, hollow and contemplative. "We must go to see what crimes my sister has been accused of."

"Star," Robin whispered softly, placing a gloved hand on her shoulder. "We're here for you."

She sniffed. "I know that Robin. But I also know that I must remain composed during these times. I do not wish for my grief to affect my abilities in battle – should it come to it." She traced a finger beneath an eye and wiped away the lone tear that trickled out. "But you must answer me one question," she probed, meeting him with a look born of hope and defeat both. "If I find my sister is indeed innocent, or not deserving of such a punishment – I must know what you shall do if I help her break free from the Citadel."

He bit his lip. He didn't honestly know. He knew that bonds between family members could overshadow anything, even the displeasure and distance Starfire felt to her sister. But if this Citadel was indeed upholding galactic law, he couldn't exactly rush in and free a convicted criminal. On the other hand, he couldn't bear to see Starfire in such a state.

But his hesitation was enough of an answer for Starfire.

"I... see," she whispered, and picked herself up to walk towards the hangar. She would rescue her sister, if she deemed her innocent enough. She knew that she would. Regardless of the way Kormand'r had treated her in the past, she was still family. And while she knew that it was unlikely her sister would do the same thing for her, she knew in the bottom of her heart that it was the right thing to do. She felt the presence of her friends nearby, and wondered who among them would follow Robin to uphold the law. She doubted Beast Boy would, and felt that Raven would understand her reasons also. Cyborg may be torn, but she felt he would also defend her. It was Robin that she knew she would have to convince. It was his unrelenting conviction to uphold the law for everyone and anyone that had been one of the things that had attracted her to him in the very first place.

But now that very same conviction was threatening the space between them, and not for the first time.

Curiously, it was Raven who spoke to her on the stairs down to the hangar.

"There's something you're not telling us," she deduced, stating her thoughts with blunt conviction. "You don't want us to know something, and it's something that's affecting your judgement of the place we're to go to."

For the first time since the aliens had left for their ship, obvious emotion broke out on Starfire's face. It was the briefest flash of hatred and fear, yet it had been slow enough for Raven to catch it. She didn't say anything, and instead waited for Starfire to answer her.

"I have... encountered the Citadel once before," she stated, spitting the words with distraught venom.

Raven nodded. She didn't say anything, or press for any explanation. It was enough for her. She understood that some matters were best resolved once the person was ready to talk about them, and had received enough experiences of her team mates showering her with questions born of worry and curiosity. She knew how little they helped matters, and so offered Starfire the distance and silence she so desired.

It was only broken when they entered the hangar, and instantly four sets of eyes rounded on all of them. Every male member of the tower was there, and Starfire knew that they were each wondering what had happened there. She had no doubt Robin could figure it out, if given enough time, and maybe Cyborg could use a few scans from his bio-machinery and figure out what was wrong. Beast Boy and Azeal were unlikely to find out unless she told them, and so she took peace in the fact that at least two members of the tower would be oblivious to her reasons unless she told them.

She didn't speak to anyone as she floated up to the ship and took her seat. It took her almost all her effort to summon up feelings of joy to fly, but she did so regardless. It told her that she needed to exert all her grief on the ship ride there, or she would need to use it to fuel her righteous fury and boundless confidence that provided her with her innate abilities.

Though she couldn't help but be curious as she saw Azeal visibly wilt outside the ship.

"There's five seats," he whispered, realising a hidden message behind it. If there had been six, he would have been trusted to help. The fact there were only five showed him that they didn't yet trust him, nor consider him worthy enough to be with.

Robin pulled a face. "You're not a Titan," he stated, simply. "The ship is built for only Titan uses, and-"

"I understand," Azeal whispered, defeated. "Logically, you would not add a sixth seat for myself unless I was a valued member of your team. Instead I am nothing more than a burden for you to carry until you manage to figure out why there have been attempts on my life since I arrived on Earth."

Cyborg pulled a face, and tried his best to cheer him up. "Hey, don't be like that!" he said, squeezing the alien's shoulder. "We need someone to look after the tower while we're away, and that's a pretty high-profile job."

"Exactly!" Beast Boy chimed in. "We all know Robin's got a secret shrine to Starfire built in some gloomy, dank corner of the tower, and if anyone ever found it, he'd scream like a girl in fear."

Raven shot him a dark look. "Define 'scream like a girl'."

Starfire ignored it all as she unbuckled herself from the ship and floated down to them. She stopped in front of Azeal and offered him the largest smile she could force onto her face. "I am truly honoured that you wish to accompany and help me on such a voyage," she whispered, speaking from the heart. "But someone must remain in the tower, just in case there is a trap set out for us. Usually we would alert a neighbouring team of our abrupt absence, but now there is no time. If we are defeated or captured, it is up to you to let out the alert." She smiled, grasped him in a brief hug and poured all the reassurance she could into him. "Whilst you are here, you can still help in any way you feel you can. I would be most delighted if you remember anything that will help – I recall you saying you learnt about the Citadel in your education systems."

He flushed. "I'll try my best," he promised her, shoulders heavy with the burden.

"Thank you," she whispered, smiling at him. She turned away and shot everyone a look, _'that's how it's done' _clearly written across her face.

She didn't know why, but she felt confident in the fact that Azeal wanted to help her. It may have been nothing but a ploy, but she felt that he truly wished to help Earth, and that he truly believed it would perish soon. She hoped her friends would also see that soon.

But regardless, she could not think on that now. She closed her eyes, whispered sweet nothings to herself and focused on the control board in front of her, aiming to lose herself in the task she had to accomplish.

She had to see what was happening with Blackfire.

* * *

Some things always worked out to plan.

Sometimes, plans never worked out.

And occasionally, a plan would fail, and in so, open up a new opportunity no one had ever seen before.

Within the confines of Jump City's high-security prison, almost all of the Hive Five occupied a series of cells, all laced with crystals that prevented any meta-human powers from being used. The one oversight in it was that, powers were only prevented whilst _inside _the cell.

They were still fully functioning outside of it.

The guards had no knowledge of such a fact, and it was why they were taken by such surprise when a dark, cold portal appeared before them one by one, and a haunting set of glowing, demonic eyes stared at them from the recesses of the darkness. It would be accompanied by the barest of a hiss, and then something would leap at them and knock them out.

The entire guard structure of the compound was taken down without a single alarm ever being raised.

Shimmer found the fact to be brilliant, and her head swam with joy when she saw that the person doing so was someone she already knew.

"Nice to see you Kyd," she said, leaning her head through the bars. The demonic looking member of her team nodded minutely and began to search the guards, looking for a set of keys or anything to break the bars.

Shimmer found it amazing that the Titans had never figured out that their ranks were down one when they were captured in the tower. She had to admit – if only to herself – that she also thought Kyd Wykkyd had ran out on them, leaving them to face the Titans alone. Now she was indescribably pleased that hadn't turned out to be the case, and his disappearance had led to their escape from prison.

Her smile doubled in length as he opened the door to her cage, and she felt the sweet euphoria of her powers being returned back to her. It was like someone had taken a massive weight out from inside her head, and she felt so much lighter, if not slightly light-headed.

Regardless of such feelings, she closed her eyes and felt around the very atmosphere that surrounded them all. It took next to no time for her to find the metallic atoms that made up the entirety of the jail cells, and the slightest nudge of will for every prison bar on the floor to turn into water.

There was a chorus of cheers all around them as all number of criminals were released from their holds. Shimmer didn't care about any of them. They could be murderers, rapists, credit card fraudsters or even otherworldly vampires. But as far as she was concerned, they didn't matter.

She found her team quickly, or more, they found _her_. She felt See-More looked incredibly strange without his visor on, though she said nothing about it. She had other plans and thoughts already racing through her skull.

"I say it's time we give those Titans a little payback," she plotted, tracing a finger along her arm and wiping off a layer of dirt. "They have to understand that _no one_ throws the Hive-Five-Redux into prison and gets away with it!"

* * *

Starfire honestly wasn't sure what she was actually going to do when she got to the Citadel. Honestly, she felt that if she encountered any psion, she was likely to rip out its vile heart and throw its despicable corpse into the darkest reaches of space.

Though she knew her friends would probably not see it the way she did. She knew that she should have told them some time ago, though never had found the strength within her to voice what had actually happened. It was something she had buried deep within her past, and she felt that she should never have had to deal with it all again.

But now it was approaching her once again, this time at several times the speed of light.

She could see a vast metallic structure emerging from the distance, stretching as far and wide as her beloved Tamaran itself. Not one inch of it seemed to be natural from the outside, and Starfire couldn't help but shudder at the sight.

It was unnatural, not living and evil. Nothing had changed about the Citadel, except that now they had one large base from which they could exercise their evil.

Swirls of colours and textures greeted her eyes as they docked within the space station itself, her mind wandering free with thoughts as Robin went through the security protocol that let them land. Once they finally did, she opened her station in their ship and allowed herself to float out of its confines and around the large metallic hangar around them.

She could see all variety of species at work within the hangar, each working together on various space ships she had never seen before, and would never have been able to dream of ever seeing. At any other time, she felt certain it would have been quite satisfying for the soul to see so many different species all working together.

But with the looming death of her sister present in her mind, she could not enjoy such sights.

Her team mates, though, seemed unoccupied enough to appreciate its grandeur.

"Dude..." Beast Boy whispered, his eyes as wide as dinner plates as he took in everything he could see. It was like something from his geekiest fantasies, except all that more incredibly real. With everything that he could see, he was sure his brain would go into overload.

Apparently it did as Raven shot him a dark look and uttered, "You're drooling."

He blinked and snapped himself to attention, grinning sheepishly at her quickly afterwards. Raven, however, simply rolled her eyes at him and turned her head away, leaving him with only the company of an awed Cyborg, who managed to say nearly twenty words in a row that Beast Boy felt he would have no hope of ever _beginning_ to figure out what they meant.

Though Robin lost none of his characteristic gloom and seriousness as he stood rigid next to Starfire, not knowing what to say to her. Finally he settled for a rather obvious comment of, "We're here."

She grunted and nodded slightly, her eyes shut against the tears she knew would be building beneath her eyelids. "Robin," she whispered only as she felt him turn away, and felt the slightest joy that his attention was back on her instantly. "I am sorry if my beliefs come between us... but I do not believe that my sister is capable of any crime which deserves such a harsh punishment." She took a breath and looked at him, her eyes brimming with tears. "I need you to know, that if I carry out actions that you do not agree with, I do not do it to upset you. Blackfire is still my sister, and even if she does not care for me, I still care for her enough to know that I shall not carry out such actions."

His eyes seemed to narrow behind his mask. "You're thinking of breaking her out," he stated, voice void of emotion.

She spared him the smallest of nods. "I am," she confirmed. "I know there are things of my past I have not told you Robin, but I have never felt the strength I needed to say such things. But-" she took one of his gloved hands in hers, and squeezed it as softly as she could. "Believe me when I say that the Citadel is a vile, evil place. I trust it as much as you trust Slade." She felt bad for bringing up his name, though knew it proved her point enough to make Robin begin to see how she felt. "I do not trust them, and if I feel that in any way they are being unfair to Blackfire, I shall not hesitate to free her from their villainy." She sniffed slightly and turned away from him, her head hung low. "But I do not wish for it to come between us."

Robin was silent a moment, his face hard in concentration. Starfire felt her heart plummet, worrying with all her being that he couldn't see what she meant, and that he would refuse to let her out of his sight the entire time of their journey. Instead, he linked his arm into hers and entwined his fingers with hers. "Star..." he whispered, surprisingly uncertain of what to say. He didn't know how he could lose all sorts of logical and clear thoughts when he was around her, though a part of him celebrated the fact, and how it made him feel just that little bit more... _normal_.

"I can see this is upsetting you," he whispered, indecision bubbling in his throat. "And I can completely understand why. But, if you say that your distrust of this place is that high... then I believe you."

Her head snapped up instantly, and the beginnings of a smile made its way onto her previously teary face. "T-truly?" she whispered, uncertain.

"Truly," he reassured her. "I don't like the idea of breaking someone out of prison, but if you really believe they would do this to her unfairly, then she at least deserves a fair trial. And if she won't receive one here, then we'll just have to take her somewhere that she will manage to get one."

"Robin," Starfire whispered, eyes brimming with tears. Words failed her, and instead she wrapped her arms around him in a crushing embrace, careful not to asphyxiate him as she held him close against her.

Their moment was ruined, however, as Eir'go cleared her throat, drawing attention back to them. They noticed quickly that her alien partner had disappeared off to parts unknown, leaving them only with her as their guard and guide. While it seemed like they trusted them more, everyone but Beast Boy suspected that there was always a sniper trained on them all the time, no matter where they went.

Effectively, it meant they wouldn't be able to do anything without someone knowing.

Which made what Starfire had planned all the harder to go off without a hitch.

* * *

Azeal wasn't honestly sure what he was to do in order to help the people that were looking after him on Earth. It felt strange to only know them as such, but they were obviously not his friends, given that they could so easily leave him behind all the time.

He felt like a burden, like he was hated, and that he should never have come to Earth, all at once.

Regardless, he still felt like he needed to begin to pay them back in some way.

He paced the floor within the common area, with only Silkie as company. The mutant larva lay on its back, staring at the alien with an expression that was somewhere between bored and intrigued.

"I know that I learnt something about such a situation whilst in my education," Azeal whispered to himself, unable to help voicing his thoughts. "There was something about political repercussions if members of royal blood ever killed each other on different planets." He sighed and raked a hand through his fiery red hair. "Some planets see it as a ritual passage; they kill off all the other heirs to the throne, ensuring that only their children can take the throne. Others see it as treason, and some are impartial to it all."

He cursed in anger at his inability to recall such information, yelping in surprise as fire burst into life around his hands. He stared at it a moment and forced calm through himself, watching in almost mesmerised awe as the flames flickered out of life, disappearing seamlessly into the palms of his hands once more.

Though the tips of his sleeves couldn't claim to be as undamaged. Small scorch marks were still present on them, and they were slightly ripped and frayed, as well as partially still aflame. He patted the fire out as quickly as he could before he collapsed onto the sofa next to Silkie, and begun to absently pet the creature as it slithered onto his lap.

"I cannot remember the information I need, and I am talking to a mutated Earth-moth larva," he lamented, leaning his head back against the cushions. "Logically, I am not going to receive any sort of an answer." He leant forwards and met Silkie's eyes, lifting an eyebrow in thought. "Though I have seen many things on this planet that defy logic. It does not make sense."

Silkie gurgled something unintelligible at him, and Azeal began to wonder just whether Starfire could actually understand the creature, or whether she just assumed his noises meant something.

He groaned and buried his face in the hand that hadn't petted the creature, only to leap out of his skin moments later as alarms flared through the tower.

Wind whipped around the room, knocking everything within flying and making a few pots and pans crash loudly to the floor. Azeal breathed and tried to steady his racing heart, and found himself walking towards the security computer console, wondering just what it meant.

If something was destroying the town, he would be unable to help. Jump City had to defend itself for the time being. Though if Cinderblock or the strange plasmic creature had come to kill him, it would be _him_ that was in need of help.

He stared at the computer console a moment, squinting to recognise the symbols of the trade language. He deduced finally it was sending out a security alert about an intruder in the tower, and instantly he was on guard.

Small poisonous quills popped out of his knuckles, and he dropped into a defensive guard, slightly annoyed by the fact his fear took obvious form in the small winds surrounding the tower.

He had no idea how to work the computer and tell it to deal with the threats, so he would have to deal with them himself. A minute passed, the alarms still flaring, and he began to think that maybe some sort of native Earth-creature had crossed the security's detection lines, and set of the alarms.

The something exploded on the levels below.

He yelped and ducked behind the computer reflexively, dimly aware that Silkie had retreated for cover within the couch as the soft breeze in the room began a light gale.

Another explosion sounded, and Azeal knew that someone or something was attacking the tower. He took a deep breath to steel himself and stepped away from the computer console, intent of finding the threat and dealing with them as best he could.

Then the walls of the room began to _melt_.

He shrieked and thought he had to be suffering some sort of horrible nightmare as someone walked through the melting walls, their hair the colour of fiery brimstone and their eyes shining like red-hot coals.

He gulped and recognised her immediately. The hellish creature that had turned his bones to mercury was back again, intent on settling the score. She stalked into the room, reality warping and melting around her until finally she stopped, and caught sight of Azeal. Ever so slowly, a smirk crawled onto her face, and she felt a laugh course its way through her throat.

"So the Titans left you in this tower, all alone, did they?" she taunted, her eyes shining with sadistic delight. The floor beneath Azeal suddenly turned liquid, and he screamed as he fell through it, stopping as it solidified again around him, trapping him completely beneath the girl.

She leant forwards, the carpet turning to oil beneath her as she laughed. "Well, I guess I'll just have to keep you company then, won't I?"


End file.
